Digital Commons Network^™

Exploring Design Fieldwork Dilemmas In Mental Healthcare Through Foucaultian Mechanisms Of Power, Eva Liisa Kubinyi, Jeanne Sintic

Nordes Conference Series

Design scholars are advocating for building a deeper and more nuanced power literacy when applying participatory approaches in mental healthcare. Although actionable frameworks have been developed to identify risks, these approaches rely heavily on designers’ analytical skills and do not offer ways to understand power through multiple scales that simultaneously influence individuals and populations. If this concern is not addressed, designers might inadvertently reproduce harmful power structures. Therefore, this paper builds a Foucaultian lens of disciplinary and bio-power to reflexively analyze design fieldwork dilemmas in mental healthcare contexts from France and Estonia. It contributes to deepening designers’ power literacy by …

Tangible Theory As Tool For Attuning To Non-Human Voices In Domestic Gardens, Mette Gislev Kjærsgaard, Tau Lenskjold, Mathilde Buskbjerg Madsen, Asbjørn Krüger Mønster, Giocchino Matteo Maniscalco

Nordes Conference Series

This paper introduces a design research tool that integrates anthropological perspectives on non-human agency to reimagine biodiversity in garden design. While gardens comprise a minor portion of global biomass, they are critical sites for urban biodiversity and multispecies interaction. A central challenge lies in learning to attune to non-human actors. Building on theories of ecological inter-dependence in the Anthropocene, we ask how such perspectives can be operationalised in design practice. Grounded in the "Patchy Anthropocene" framework (Tsing et al., 2019), the tool translates theoretical insights into an actionable prototype. Drawing on interviews with garden owners in six European countries, it …

Poetic Layers: Exploring The Aesthetics Of Bias, Young Suk Lee, Johan Redstöm

Nordes Conference Series

As new technologies enter everyday life, designs have to address new interactions between ethics and aesthetics as new possibilities also come with new consequences. A current example concerns Artificial Intelligence (AI), and the issues of bias that seem to come with its predictive and generative capacities. To explore bias further, we start with the question that if bias is present (and perhaps cannot be completely eliminated), what could it be like to instead work with its expressions? And could exploring an ‘aesthetics of bias’ allow us to come closer to where bias comes from in the first place, in how …

Slack Lines: Comprehending Grace In Entangled Worlds, Erik Sandelin

Nordes Conference Series

Designers increasingly celebrate more-than-human entanglement, touch, hybridity and care as antidotes to ecological devastation and animal exploitation. However, embroiling other animals in human realms can be a kiss of death for the animal. How is grace – careful and creative moves away from the other – possible in entangled worlds? Through the design experiment Fishwatching – a reconfigured angling setup where you catch fish on camera instead of on a hook – I articulate four tensors for comprehending grace in interdependent relational design: the taut line of human supremacy, the severed line of emancipation and the constricting net of entanglement. …

Designing For Multispecies Affordances: A Poetics Of Control, Martin Avila, Nelly Mäekivi, Erik Andersson

Nordes Conference Series

This workshop will engage participants in an exercise that conceives experimental design practices that involve communication with other-than-human species. The process encourages a shift away from human-centred control, creating conditions that allow other species to manifest their own behaviours. This is important since the dominant global material culture of design does not acknowledge the presence and interaction of other species with things designed, erasing biodiversity as human habits repeat anthropocentric and destructive ecological patterns. Building on the work of J. J. Gibson’s concept of affordances, and other work that conform the emerging field that today is understood as posthumanism, the …

An Adventure With Ai: A Relational Techno-Life Design Approach, Yue Zou, Shenhuan Lu, Yile Zhang

Nordes Conference Series

The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into ecosystems necessitates a paradigm shift in design thinking, moving beyond anthropocentric models to embrace relational frameworks. This paper proposes relational techno-life design, an approach to reconceptualize AI as co-constitutive agents within socio material networks and broad ecological system. Through speculative case studies—LOVOT, LO, and AquaGuardian—we analyze how relational techno-life design can foster symbiotic relationships across human, nonhuman, and AI. An eco-cultural-techno framework reveals the potential for AI to mediate ecological resilience, cultural practices, and ethical co-evolution, while critiquing anthropocentric hierarchies and dualisms. The study contributes to relational design theory by advocating for nondualist …

Relational Design For More-Than-Human Narratives, Margaret Rynning, Lene Utigard, Annette Briest Kriszat

Nordes Conference Series

This workshop explores the intersection of relational design, storytelling, and more-than-human perspectives to challenge anthropocentric assumptions and foster deeper ecological awareness. Through speculative and sensory-based design interventions, participants will engage with local edible wild plants, highlighting their agency and cultural significance. By addressing the phenomenon of "plant blindness" and incorporating multimodal storytelling, the session aims to reframe human-nature relationships, cultivating empathy and care for non-human entities. Participants will co-create speculative narratives, experiment with sensory engagement, and develop ethical frameworks for more regenerative design practices. The workshop encourages designers and researchers to rethink their roles, embracing interdependence, sustainability, and justice in …

Der Wille Zur Macht: Versuch Einer Umwertung Aller Werte, Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche

Hannah Arendt Marginalia - All

Leipzig: Kröner, c1930

Contains marginalia, underlining, marginal lining and endpaper notes.

Call #: B3313 .W5 1930

PDF Information: 281 pages – 177.6mb

Global Drag And Cultural Scapes: Examining Queer Manifestations Of The Appadurian Cultural Economy In Guadalajara, Mexico, Logan Baggett

Proceedings of the annual meeting of the Southern Anthropological Society

This study investigates the emerging drag performance scene in Mexico, in the context of globalization and media expansion, particularly following the launch of Drag Race Mexico in 2023. Utilizing Appadurai’s framework of global cultural flows, this article examines how local drag culture navigates, resists, and engages the influence of international media conglomerates and technology that shape evolving queer ideologies. I argue that drag artists leverage media visibility to advance their careers while confronting challenges such as cultural authenticity and financial precarity. Such media visibility is conditioned by the presence of two drag series, La Más Draga and Drag Race Mexico, …

Unwrapping The Cube Visual Essay, Arthur L. Loeb, C. Todd Stewart

Loeb Design Science: Documents

A visual and conceptual essay illustrating the many faces and properties of the cube.

Influence Of Water Hardness Used In Preparing Wheat Grain For Grinding On The Process Of "Stale" During Storage Of Bakery Products, Suvonqul S. Ravshanov, Ilkhom S. Nurmatov, Ulugbek N. Baltabaev

CHEMISTRY AND CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

The hot climatic conditions of Uzbekistan are favorable for the development of mesophilic bacteria in bread products. The quality of the water used in this process has a great influence. The purpose of the study is to study the effect of water of different hardness on the change in the shelf life of bread during hydrothermal treatment for grinding wheat grain. To determine the freshness (staleness) of bread by rheological properties, the AP-4/2 automatic penetrometer and other devices for analyzing the properties of bread products were used. The conducted analyzes allowed us to conclude from the results of the study …

Synthesis And Ir Spectroscopic Study Of Complexes Of Selected 3d-Metals With 2-(Phenylmethyl)-1h-Benzimidazole, Gulnoza O. Babayeva, Gulbeka G. Mamatova, Daminbek A. Ziyatov, Lola Sh. Makhmudova, Shahlo Sh. Daminova

CHEMISTRY AND CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

The aim of this study was the synthesis and structural investigation of coordination compounds of selected 3d-metals with 2-(phenylmethyl)-1H-benzimidazole (FAB) using IR spectroscopy. Complexes of copper(II), nickel(II), cobalt(II), and zinc(II) with the general formula [M(FAB)₂Cl₂], as well as a complex [Co(FAB)₂(ac)₂], were synthesized. IR spectroscopic analysis revealed that FAB coordinates to metal ions through the nitrogen atom of the benzimidazole ring. Shifts in the ν(C=N), ν(C-N) bands and the appearance of new bands in the 580-430 cm⁻¹ region corresponding to ν(M-N) and ν(M-Cl) confirm the formation of metal complexes. It was established …

Full Issue, Kritika Kultura

Kritika Kultura

Brina (2016), Chhorii (2021), and Jayeshbhai Jordaar (2022).

Racism And Sexism In Hollywood: Overcoming The Barriers To True Representation Of Women Of Color In The Film Industry, Emily Smith

Venture: The University of Mississippi Undergraduate Research Journal

This research paper dives into the omnipresent issues of gender discrimination and racism that women of color regularly face as professionals in the film industry, emphasizing the need for inclusion and diversity in Hollywood. It examines the disparity in representation among people of color, particularly how women are often denied the same opportunities as their male counterparts. The paper showcases the systemic biases against minority groups and lack of opportunity both on and off screen, as well as racial and gender stereotyping. Specifically, this paper seeks to reveal how obstacles such as colorism, tokenism, and white feminism impact the recognition …

A Conversation Between Octavia Butler's Kindred And Angela Davis's Are Prisons Obsolete?: Brutality, Misogynoir, And Haunting, Sydney Guntharp

Venture: The University of Mississippi Undergraduate Research Journal

Octavia Butler’s Kindred and Angela Davis’s Are Prisons Obsolete? textually parallel one another in vital ways that mirror the lack of linear separation between the socalled historical past and modern conditions of racialized oppression, confinement, and brutal treatment. Through tandemly analyzing these texts, the modes of misogynoiristic control potently exacted on the enslaved/imprisoned Black woman’s body are clearly rendered across time. The presence of the plantation, as it follows Butler’s fictional characters through the literal medium of time travel, haunts the modern prisonindustrial complex, which Davis extrapolates through a detailed history of racialized punishment within the United States. Both texts …

Microbiome–Immune Interaction And Harnessing For Next-Generation Vaccines Against Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza In Poultry, Yongming Sang, Samuel N. Nahashon, Richard J. Webby

Food and Animal Sciences Faculty Research

Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) remains a persistent threat to global poultry production and public health. Current vaccine platforms show limited cross-clade efficacy and often fail to induce mucosal immunity. Recent advances in microbiome research reveal critical roles for gut commensals in modulating vaccine-induced immunity, including enhancement of mucosal IgA production, CD8+ T-cell activation, and modulation of systemic immune responses. Engineered commensal bacteria such as Lactococcus lactis, Bacteroides ovatus, Bacillus subtilis, and Staphylococcus epidermidis have emerged as promising live vectors for antigen delivery. Postbiotic and synbiotic strategies further enhance protective efficacy through targeted modulation of the gut microbiota. Additionally, artificial …

Understanding, Deterring, And Preparing For A Great-Power War In The Twenty-First Century, Antulio J. Echevarria Ii, Larry P. Goodson, Brennan Deveraux

Integrated Research Projects

The US government and the US Army are unprepared for a great-power war. This integrated research project (IRP), sponsored by Vice Chief of Staff of the Army General James J. Mingus, is a critical first step in helping senior US Army leaders increase their knowledge of, and preparations for, deterring or fighting a great-power war in the twenty-first century. No one knows how long the US government and the US Army have to prepare for a future conflict. Consequently, the US Department of Defense faces difficult decisions as it balances preparing for a future war with maintaining readiness to address …

Application And Comparison Of Satellite-Derived Sea Surface Temperature Gradients To Identify Seasonal And Interannual Variability Off The California Coast: Preliminary Results And Future Perspectives, Jorge Vazquez-Cuervo, Marisol García-Reyes, David S. Wethey, Daniele Ciani, Jose Gomez-Valdes

Faculty Publications

The application of satellite-derived sea surface temperature in coastal regions is critical for resolving the dynamics of frontal features and coastal upwelling. Here, we examine and compare sea surface temperature (SST) gradients derived from two satellite products, the Multi-Scale Ultra-High Resolution SST Product (MUR, 0.01° grid scale) and the Operational SST and Ice Analysis (OSTIA, 0.05° grid scale), available through the Group for High Resolution SST (GHRSST). Both products show similar seasonal variability, with maxima occurring in the summer time frame. Additionally, both products show an increasing trend of SST gradients near the coast. However, differences exist between the two …

Motivational Factors Affecting Female Students' Choice Of Stem And Non-Stem Majors At Us Universities, Buthaina Ruyyashi

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The problem addressed in this study is the persistently low enrollment of female undergraduate students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) majors within U.S. universities. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the relationship between female undergraduate students' choice of STEM versus non-STEM majors and their motivational factors, as measured by the Motivations Influencing Course Choice (MICC) survey. The study was grounded in social cognitive career theory, which emphasizes the role of self-efficacy, outcome expectations, and personal goals in academic decision-making. The analysis assessed the predictive power of career aspiration, interest, helping, and loafing in determining major …

A Toolkit For Treating Obesity In Children With Metabolic Syndrome, Karen Mayers-Scott

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This doctoral project seeks to bridge the existing knowledge gap in using Metformin to manage childhood obesity in patients with metabolic syndrome. The primary goal was to develop a complete toolkit to educate healthcare providers on utilizing Metformin in obese children with metabolic syndrome. Metabolic syndrome, characterized by higher triglycerides, decreased high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, increased blood pressure, elevated fasting plasma glucose, and increased waist circumference, offers considerable health hazards for children. The practice-focused question is, Is the toolkit deemed useful to providers for treating obesity in children with metabolic syndrome using metformin?” The project employed the theory of planned behavior, …

Emergence Of Norms In The Presence Of Social Network Structure In A Stochastic Evolutionary Game Theory Model, Parker Foresman

Dissertations and Theses

In their 2000 paper, The Emergence of Classes in a Multi-Agent Bargaining Model, Axtell, Epstein, and Young introduced an agent-based bargaining model to study how social norms can emerge and persist from the decentralized, asynchronous interactions of individual agents in the presence of noise, even when these agents have no predefined preferences or advantages. This thesis extends their model by incorporating structured interaction networks, allowing us to investigate how the topology of agent interactions influences long-run dynamics and norm formation. Using a custom simulation package built in the Julia programming language, we replicate the original results under a complete …

An Enzyme-Coupled Isotope Dilution Mass Spectrometry Assay For Non-Adjacent Dna Photoproducts As Intrinsic Probes For G-Quadruplexes In Vitro, Savannah Sharee Scruggs

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

G-quadruplexes are noncanonical secondary structures that form in guanine-rich nucleic acid sequences and are thought to be involved in the control of gene expression.1 Unfortunately, it has been difficult to prove that these structures exist in vivo because of their dynamic nature. Rather than try to develop G-quadruplex specific binders as others have done,2 our idea is to photochemically trap certain types of G-quadruplexes by irreversible photoproduct formation3–5 and then detect the stable G-quadruplex-specific photoproducts by Isotopic Dilution Mass Spectrometry (IDMS).6 This IDMS method could then be used to unambiguously confirm the presence of specific types of G-quadruplexes in vivo …

Dynamic Mutational Profiling Of Binding Interactions And Allosteric Networks In Conformational Ensembles Of The Sars-Cov-2 Spike Protein Complexes With Classes Of Antibodies Targeting Cryptic Binding Sites: Confluence Of Binding And Allostery Determines Molecular Mechanisms And Hotspots Of Immune Escape, Mohammed Alshahrani, Vedant Parikh, Brandon Foley, Gennady M. Verkhivker

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

The ongoing evolution of SARS-CoV-2 variants has underscored the need to understand not only the structural basis of antibody recognition but also the dynamic and allosteric mechanisms that could underlie complexity of broad and escape-resistant neutralization. In this study, we employed a multi-scale approach integrating structural analysis, hierarchical molecular simulations, mutational scanning and network-based allosteric modeling to dissect how Class 4 antibodies (represented by S2X35, 25F9, and SA55) and Class 5 antibodies (represented by S2H97, WRAIR-2063 and WRAIR-2134) can modulate conformational behavior, binding energetics, allosteric interactions and immune escape patterns of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. Using hierarchical simulations of the …

Pcsk9–Dyslipidemia Interplay In Children And Adolescents With Type 1 Diabetes: A Potential Modulator Of Vasculopathy, Eman Ramadan

Pharmacy

BACKGROUND: Proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type-9 (PCSK9) has recently emerged as an important vasculopathy modulator. However, limited data exist on its level and expression in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes (T1D). AIM: To assess serum PCSK9 and gene expression among children and adolescents with T1D and correlate them with glycemia, dyslipidemia, and microvascular complications. METHODS: Fifty children and adolescents with T1D were compared to 50 matched healthy controls. Serum PCSK9 enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) gene expression, glycated-hemoglobin, fundus, urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio (uACR) and fasting lipids were assessed with calculation of the estimated-glucose …

Updates In Contemporary Management Of Singleton Pregnancies Complicated By A Short Cervix, Moti Gulersen, Vincenzo Berghella, Eran Bornstein

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology Faculty Papers

Singleton pregnancies complicated by a short cervical length (≤25 mm) are at significantly increased risk for spontaneous preterm birth. Several treatment strategies aimed at reducing this risk and improving perinatal outcomes have been evaluated, including vaginal progesterone, cervical cerclage, and cervical pessary. This review summarizes the latest evidence regarding the efficacy of these interventions. Vaginal progesterone and/or cervical cerclage have been identified as proven evidence-based practices for preterm birth prevention and improve neonatal outcomes. Vaginal progesterone reduces the risk of preterm birth < 35 weeks by 27% (relative risk 0.73, 95% confidence interval 0.58-0.90). Cervical cerclage has been shown to reduce the risk of preterm birth < 35 weeks by 30% (relative risk 0.70, 95% confidence interval 0.55-0.89) in patients with a short cervical length and prior preterm birth. In contrast, recent data suggest that cervical pessary should no longer be considered a management option for these patients. A continued focus on individualized, evidence-based approaches remains essential to optimizing outcomes in this high-risk population.

Gender In Translation: How The Contemporary Bible Is Challenging Androcentric Language In Translation Through Gender-Accurate And Feminist Hermeneutical Lenses, Matthew T. Gennard

Masters Theses

This Thesis surveys the changing practice of gender-accurate translation from the late nineteenth century to the present, with special consideration for the three key principles of gender-accurate translation: Generic ‘he,’ androcentric lexemes, and pronoun substitution. These focus areas are derived from an analysis of the five translation guidelines produced during the late twentieth-century gender-neutral controversy. The loss of individuality when introducing pronominal interchange or the masculine representative hermeneutical lens has left scholars divided on gender-accurate practices. This study surveys the sociohistorical development of the feminist hermeneutical lens and the changing linguistic trends of contemporary language, which challenge androcentric assumptions in …

Dosimetric Comparison Of Organ-At-Risk Constraints Across Multi-Resolution Levels In Eclipse Planning Optimization, Ji Hyun Jeon

Masters Projects

Background: In inverse treatment planning, the timing of applying organ-at-risk (OAR) constraints during the optimization process can influence dosimetric outcomes. This study investigates the effects of introducing OAR constraints at different stages of the multi-resolution optimization process within the Eclipse Treatment Planning System (TPS).

Purpose: To determine the optimal resolution level for applying OAR constraints that achieves the best dosimetric balance between target coverage and normal tissue sparing.

Methods: Thirteen prostate cancer treatment plans were generated using an anonymized pelvic CT dataset from The Cancer Imaging Archive. All plans were developed in GVSU Virtual Eclipse TPS using the Photon Optimizer …

Radioactive Contamination And Climate Warming Affect Physiological Performance Of Chornobyl Barn Swallows, Zbyszek Boratyríski, Timothy Mousseau, Anders Pape Møller

Faculty Publications

Global warming and degradation of natural habitats are the two main factors causing ecophysiological stress on individuals and risk for biodiversity. Hyperthermia is a common response to stress in homeothermic animals, in particular to heat, pathogens and environmental contamination. Resilience of biological systems to global warming may be deteriorated in polluted habitats. Here we investigated how body temperature of a wild bird, the barn swallow (Hirundo rustica), responded to global warming while simultaneously exposed to radioactive contamination from the Chernobyl accident. Our results showed that both high air temperatures (t = 15.55, df = 335, p <  0.0001) and elevated environmental radioactive contamination (t = 5.18, df = 8.09, p = 0.0008) increased internal body temperature of individuals. The additive effect suggests that birds might suffer hyperthermia in locally contaminated habitat (1.47% body temperature increase) while simultaneously exposed to globally rising temperatures (1.95% body temperature increase), potentially reducing the fitness of individual and the maintenance of breeding colonies. The cumulative and interactive negative effects of multiple stressors, such as those emerging from increasing habitat degradation and climate change, will likely contribute to biodiversity losses globally.

Spirituality And Perceived Insider Status: A Study Of Organizational Commitment Of African American Female Leaders In Fortune 1000 Companies, Toni Y. Stubbs

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This quantitative study examined the relationships among spirituality, perceived insider status, and organizational commitment among African American female leaders within Fortune 1000 companies. Using a cross-sectional design, the research gathered data from 119 participants through online surveys that included the Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWBS), the Perceived Insider Status Scale (PIS), and the Organizational Commitment Questionnaire (OCQ). Analyses included Pearson correlations and mediation modeling to address the research questions. The results revealed a strong, statistically significant relationship between perceived insider status and organizational commitment. Although spirituality did not directly predict organizational commitment, it demonstrated a small but significant mediating effect between …

Msw Degree Completion: Foster Care Alumni’S Perceptions Of Barriers, Resilience, And Success, Christa Martinez

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This capstone research project involved examining foster care alumni who successfully graduated from Master of Social Work (MSW) programs as full-time students. The purpose of this study was to address resilience factors and this population’s perceptions of barriers, resilience, and success in terms of completing full-time MSW programs and career outcomes. The resiliency theory and a strength-based-perspective were frameworks for this research. This basic qualitative research study involved using purposive sampling, and 11 foster care alumni were interviewed who graduated from full-time MSW graduate programs in the United States. Through thematic analysis, themes emerged were lack of economic resources impacting …