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Ecological And Evolutionary Divergence Of A Shared Sympatric Color Polymorphism In Paracirrhites Hawkfish, Samuel Greaves

Graduate Studies Theses and Dissertations 2026

Color polymorphism provides a tractable window into how selection, gene flow, and ecology interact to maintain phenotypic diversity and initiate divergence. I investigate the ecological and genomic basis of sympatric light and melanistic morphs in two reef hawkfishes, Paracirrhites arcatus and P. hemistictus, across Guam and Hawai‘i. This study aims to determine whether the color morphs of these hawkfishes are a stable polymorphism or have begun the process of ecological speciation. For P. arcatus revealed substantially lower density on Guam (0.086 ind/m²) than reported for Hawai‘i (0.292 ind/m²) and a strong skew away from the melanistic morph on Guam …

Excluded At The Root: Health Insurance Discrimination Against Hair Loss Conditions, Stacey A. Tovino, Tracy Hresko Pearl

Faculty Articles

No abstract provided.

Perceptions Of Georgia Elementary School Administrators Toward Elementary Agricultural Education, Addie Tucker

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

Elementary agricultural education (EAE) is a growing component of K-12 agricultural education, yet limited research exists on how school leaders perceive its value. The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of Georgia elementary school administrators regarding the implementation and value of EAE programs. Specifically, this study examined elementary principals’ and district superintendents’ views on the benefits, effectiveness, and value of EAE. A descriptive research design was used. Georgia elementary principals and district superintendents with active EAE programs during the 2025-2026 academic year were surveyed in the fall of 2025. The sample consisted of 18 principals and 18 …

The Economic Impact Of The Georgia Young Farmers Association On Georgia's Economy, Robert E. Bodiford Iii

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

Agriculture is Georgia’s largest economy, generating billions of dollars annually. Sustaining this sector requires ongoing investment in human capital through education, training, and leadership development. While research has extensively examined youth agricultural education, limited attention has been given to the economic contributions of adult agricultural education programs. The Georgia Young Farmers Association serves as a primary provider of structured adult agricultural education in the state, offering continuing education through meetings, farm tours, workshops, and leadership development activities. The purpose of this study was to estimate the economic impact of the Georgia Young Farmers Association on Georgia’s economy[BL1] . The …

Comprehensive Postsecondary Transition Planning For Students With Intellectual Disability In Florida, Sonia Y. Clark-Rosier

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the impact of early transition planning on parents’ postsecondary expectations for their child with an intellectual disability and to examine the benefits of planning, particularly when considering higher education opportunities. This study also probed the factors that contribute to the development of self-efficacy in special education teachers facilitating comprehensive transition planning. Schlossberg’s transition theory, with its four S’s—situation, support, self, and strategies—served as the theoretical framework. The data collection methods were document analysis, focus groups with special education teachers, high school teachers, and parents, and researcher observations. Seven themes emerged to …

Soil Nutrient Sufficiency Versus Plant Nutrient Status In Compost-Amended Soils: Plant Tissue Analysis As A Diagnostic Tool, Chandralekha Joga Miss

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

This study evaluated whether Mehlich III soil nutrient sufficiency ratings reliably predict plant nutrient status and chlorophyll response across contrasting compost application histories. A greenhouse pot experiment was conducted with Chijimisai (Brassica rapa) planted in three treatment soils that had no compost (T1), moderate compost history (T2), and long-term hog manure compost application (T3). Plant performance was assessed through weekly shoot length and chlorophyll content (SPAD) measurements, leaf number at maturity, and leaf tissue nutrient analysis conducted at harvest. Soil test results indicated adequate to high nutrient levels across all three treatments. Leaf tissue analysis, however, revealed substantial …

Stop, You Have Violated The Law … Of The Sea: The Alien Tort Statute And International Deep Seabed Mining, Cooper Olander

California Western International Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Identifying The Knowledge And Skills That Students Enrolled In Agricultural Systems Technology Degree Programs Need: Perspectives From University Faculty, Jerry Blake Kennedy

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

National trends have highlighted the need for a knowledgeable, skilled workforce in advanced agricultural systems. University-level Agricultural Systems Technology (AST) undergraduate degree programs and closely-related degree programs are vital to equipping the agricultural workforce with the knowledge and skills needed to support the industry. Ensuring that AST curricula are relevant and appropriate is vital to equipping undergraduate students in such programs with the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in the modern agricultural workforce. This study sought to identify the essential knowledge and skills needed by undergraduate AST degree program students from the perspectives of university-level faculty across the …

The Relationship Between Program Staffing And State-Level Student Outcomes In Georgia School-Based Agricultural Education Programs, Taylor Ogle

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between the number of agriculture teachers employed in Georgia high school agricultural education programs and selected indicators of program success. Specifically, the study investigated the relationship between the number of agriculture teachers and first-place state-level competitive success in Career Development Events (CDEs), Leadership Development Events (LDEs), proficiency awards, Georgia State FFA Degrees earned, and student participation in state-level FFA leadership positions. A quantitative, correlational research design was utilized for this study. Data was collected from Georgia FFA records. Agricultural education programs within the state of Georgia served as the unit …

Eyes Turn To Adoptees: A Critical Content Analysis Of Eyes That Weave The World’S Wonders, Becky Leathersich

Education Faculty/Staff Publications

In this article, Critical Adoption Studies, Asian Critical Race Theory, and the Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association (APALA) Rubric are applied to analyze Eyes That Weave the World’s Wonders (2024) by Joanna Ho and Liz Kleinrock, illustrated by Dung Ho. The article situates the picture book against trends in children’s literature and scholarship on Korean transracial adoption. A critical content analysis reveals the racialization of the adoptee, centering of the adoptive parents, and description of adoption as an act of love with a discussion of how the authorship, as well as the socioeconomic and geopolitical factors of adoption, impacted this picture …

Population Genomics And Evolution Of Pseudomonas Aeruginosa, Samara T. Choudhury

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a Gram-negative bacterium ubiquitous in diverse environments and an opportunistic pathogen in humans. It is a leading cause of chronic lung infections in cystic fibrosis patients and of hospital-acquired pneumonia and sepsis. With a large flexible genome and abundant mobile genetic elements, P. aeruginosa exhibits high levels of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), making it a significant public health threat. Evolutionary processes such as homologous recombination, and horizontal gene transfer generate extensive genomic diversity in this species and facilitate the spread of resistance genes. In this dissertation, I investigate the genetic and evolutionary factors shaping P. aeruginosa population structure …

Studies Towards Chemical Synthesis Of Homogeneous Prion Glycoprotein, Baotong Tian

Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present)

Prion diseases are fatal neurodegenerative disorders initiated by conformational misfolding of the prion protein (PrP), which generates pathogenic conformers that propagate via templated conversion and accumulate as aggregates. Glycosylation can modulate the PrP folding energy landscape, thereby biasing folding trajectories and the distribution of resulting conformational states. Bank vole PrP contains two N-linked glycosylation sites, and disentangling the contributions of site occupancy versus glycan structure requires homogeneous, site-defined glycoforms. In contrast, biosynthetic expression typically produces heterogeneous glycoform ensembles due to multistep Golgi processing, precluding independent control of glycan identity at each site. Here we report a chemical synthesis strategy of …

Commencement Program 2026, Loma Linda University

Commencement Programs

CONTENTS

1 | Message from the President

3 | 2026 Events of Commencement

5 | The Academic Procession

6 | Institutional Administration

7 | Board of Trustees

8 | Significance of Academic Regalia

9 | University History Highlights

11 | Loma Linda University Health and Loma Linda University Honorees

The Programs, The School Honorees, and The Speakers

24 | School of Medicine

43 | School of Pharmacy

54 | School of Dentistry

72 | School of Public Health

85 | San Manuel Gateway College

91 | School of Allied Health Professions — Allied Health Studies, Cardiopulmonary Sciences, Clinical Laboratory Science, …

From It-Girls To Obscurity: What Happened To The Stettheimer Sisters?, Catherine Pierce Higgins

MA Theses

This dissertation explores the lives and impact of the three Stettheimer sisters, Florine, Carrie and Ettie, cultural innovators, and major influencers of a distinctive, feministic strand of American modernism in New York between 1914 and 1950. The Stettheimer sisters did not use their privilege to assimilate into society but to create an alternate artistic universe, resisting the male hierarchies of the dominant avant-garde. By controlling a salon, an intellectual and creative social center where artists, writers, and intellectuals such as Marcel Duchamp, Georgia O’Keeffe and Carl Van Vechten held court, they were able to create an environment in which femininity, …

An Empirical Study Of Malingering In Insanity Cases Across Twelve Decades, Deborah W. Denno

Faculty Scholarship

The last 120 years have seen a surge in the use of neuroscientific evidence in American criminal law cases, fueled by discoveries in brain science that have challenged the legal system’s assumptions about human thinking and culpability. One key assumption is that many defendants “malinger,” that is, feign or fake insanity or mental illness, to garner an acquittal or mitigated punishment. Likewise, when potential evidence that a defendant is malingering is introduced in court, it can have a pronounced and powerful negative effect on the defendant’s insanity claim, especially when juries and criminal justice actors are already skeptical of insanity …

When Clades Collide: Genomic Admixture In Blacklegged Ticks (Ixodes Scapularis) From The Great Plains, Kaylee S. Herzog, Zach Pella, Halie Smith, Dayna Mccormick, Lily Nuss, Amanda Brinkworth, Sujata S. Chaudhari, Kathryn Duncan, Kellee Sundstrom, Sydney Stein, Holly Black, Jose E. Pietri, Ryan C. Smith, Jeff Hamik, Roberto Cortiñas, Joseph R. Fauver

Journal Articles: Epidemiology

Ixodes scapularis ticks transmit a number of pathogens important to human health, including Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto, the causative agent of Lyme disease. While I. scapularis is found across the Eastern United States, Lyme disease transmission is largely limited to the Northeast and Upper Midwest and is nearly absent in the South. This indicates that differences in northern versus southern clades of I. scapularis are associated with differences in Lyme disease transmission risk. Ixodes scapularis is undergoing range expansion, including into the Great Plains region of the United States. Determining where I. scapularis populations in the Great Plains originated can …

Sphingosine-1-Phosphate Regulation To Alleviate Sickle Cell Disease Severity: A Promising Therapeutic Approach, Shahanas Chathoth

Saudi Medical Journal

Abstract Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a genetic disorder that affects millions of individuals worldwide. Chronic anemia, hemolysis and vasculopathy are the most common symptoms that arise from hemoglobin (Hb) polymerization, which is the primary event of SCD. The above process can lead to erythrocyte sickling. Therapeutic options for SCD remain limited, and novel therapies are still being evaluated for their effectiveness in particular populations. Sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P), a significant bioactive sphingolipid, acts as a potent signal mediator, modulating several cellular functions. The potential role of erythrocyte-S1P in enhancing SCD severity has been previously reported by multiple studies. Therefore, the present …

Engineering Plga Nanoparticle Size To Modulate Immune Responses After Spinal Cord Injury, Daniel J. Kolpek

University of Kentucky Doctoral Dissertations

Spinal cord injury is a severe and debilitating condition that often results in lifelong complications, including paralysis. Many of these chronic outcomes are driven by a sustained inflammatory response at the injury site, which limits tissue regeneration and functional recovery. As a result, therapeutic strategies that modulate this immune response have gained significant interest. Polymer based nanoparticle therapies have emerged as a promising approach due to their ability to interact with and influence immune cell behavior. Importantly, the physicochemical properties of nanoparticles can be precisely tuned to optimize these effects. Among these properties, size has been shown to influence key …

Study Of The Relationship Between Insulin Resistance And Osteoporosis In Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus And Diabetic Nephropathy Elderly Patients, Mohamed Zakarya Nooh, Alaa Abdelsalam Dawood, Bassant Samy Hamed Hafez, Moustafa Bakrey Hamed Ata

Mansoura Medical Journal

Background Type 2 diabetes mellitus and diabetic kidney disease play a major role in bone deterioration and increased fracture risk because they influence both insulin sensitivity and bone metabolism. Objective The purpose of this study was to investigate the connection between osteoporosis and insulin resistance in older individuals with type 2 diabetes and diabetic kidney disease (DKD). Methods: A total of 105 participants were enrolled in the study and divided equally into three groups: 35 diabetic patients with albuminuria, 35 diabetic patients without albuminuria, and 35 age- and gender-matched healthy controls. The study was conducted at the Endocrinology & DM …

A Dataset-Centric Analysis Of Evaluation Protocols In Face Morph Attack Detection, Sheerko R. Hmasalah, Abdulbasit K. Al-Talabani, Aras T. Asaad

Polytechnic Journal

Face morph attack detection (MAD) is often evaluated using datasets collected from diverse sources, created for different purposes, and acquired under varying conditions. This heterogeneity raises questions about how evaluation protocols and dataset characteristics influence reported performance. This work adopts a dataset-centric perspective to analyze the effects of evaluation protocol and dataset composition, including visual quality and morph-to-genuine imbalance, on MAD performance. Experiments are conducted on eight datasets and four morphing techniques using a fixed pipeline evaluated across six backbones, including Vision Transformer (ViT) and five CNN architectures, and ten evaluation scenarios covering homogeneous and heterogeneous cross-morph generalization. Performance is …

Influences On Student College-Major Decision And Satisfaction Rate Among Students In The School Of Agriculture, Danielle Shafer

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the factors that influence students to choose agriculture majors and agriculture careers and measure the level of satisfaction with their major based on these influences. There are many factors that influence students to choose a major in college and college-major satisfaction. These influences and satisfaction with major may have an impact on a student’s decision to choose a college career path. Some of the influences mentioned in studies are family, friends, educators, extension programs, clubs, financial, and recruitment efforts. The degree to which each of these influence students may depend on the …

Constructing Information Systems: Technology Frames And Career Interest Among Middle School Students, Cherie Noteboom, Sai Mounika Chintalapudi

Research & Publications

The Information Systems (IS) discipline faces ongoing challenges in attracting students to the field despite its growing societal importance. Previous studies have examined how factors such as gender gaps and STEM identities shape career aspirations; however, there is limited understanding of how early interpretations of the IS discipline shape career interest. This research adapts the TFR (Technology Frames of Reference) theory to examine how middle school students develop understandings of IS. Using qualitative survey data through a deductive approach to identify the Nature of IS, the Purpose of IS, and IS-in-Use, misalignment, and career interest. Misalignment reflects limited knowledge of …

Democratizing Restitution: Trust As An Equitable Approach To Competing Claims On Cultural Heritage Objects, Britta Redwood

Articles

As formerly colonized states began to win their independence in the mid-twentieth century, a growing chorus of voices called on museums in London, Paris, Berlin, and other European cities to return objects taken during the colonial period. Having largely ignored these requests until recently, museums throughout Europe and the United States have begun negotiating returns of these objects to their rightful owners. There is a growing recognition among Western cultural institutions that continuing to hold cultural heritage objects taken under conditions of coercion or violence is morally untenable. More recently, some scholars have argued for a human rights approach to …

Sonic Costumes For Immersive Theme Park Storytelling: Developing Interactive Wearables To Enhance Performer, Audience, And Environment Interaction, Rachel Yee

Graduate Studies Theses and Dissertations 2026

Costumes enhance the themed experience through visual storytelling while also allowing performers to interact fluidly with a physical space. These garments are typically passive storytellers in theme parks, even if the performers interact directly with guests. Some garments coordinate with and react to elements of the themed environment, predominantly when worn by performers within live shows, parades, or streetmosphere settings. However, this interactivity is often available only at a distance from guests, causing a separation between audience and performer. For instance, lights on parade costumes, such as those throughout Disney’s Magic Kingdom Park, often synchronize only with parade floats and …

Green Hydrogen-Based Decarbonization Approach For Steel Industry With Hybrid Renewable Energy Sources, Raju Kumar Maurya, Dharmbir Prasad, Rudra Pratap Singh

Mansoura Engineering Journal

This work provides a micro-pilot techno-economic and environmental assessment of a green hydrogen-driven decarbonization scenario for low-carbon steel production at the capacity of 1 ton steel produced (i.e., requiring 50 kg of green hydrogen). In this work an integrated renewable energy (RE) scenario for the steel production site at Jamuria, West Bengal, India is planned to utilize solar photovoltaic (PV), wind turbines (WTs), battery storage and a diesel backup generator to meet the hydrogen production load from an electrolyzer using HOMER Pro software. The results show that the proposed micro-pilot system produces excess electricity with respect to the plant's operating …

Hall Current And Nth Order Chemical Reaction Effects On Unsteady 3d Mhd Williamson Nanofluid Flow With Thermophoresis And Brownian Motion Over An Inclined Stretching Sheet, Polavarapu Sudheer, Ramachandra Reddy Vaddemani, Raghunath Kodi

Mansoura Engineering Journal

This study examines the influence of Hall current and nth-order chemical reaction on unsteady three-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) Williamson nanofluid flow over an inclined stretching sheet. The model incorporates thermal radiation, heat source, Brownian motion, and thermophoresis effects. The governing nonlinear partial differential equations are transformed into a system of ordinary differential equations using similarity transformations and solved numerically using the shooting method with a fourth-order Runge–Kutta scheme. The results indicate that an increase in the magnetic parameter significantly reduces velocity profiles while enhancing temperature and concentration distributions. The Hall parameter reduces surface drag and improves heat transfer, while decreasing mass …

An Intuitionistic Fuzzy Hypergraph Model Enhanced ‎By Forest-Of-Walks Dynamics For Medical Image ‎Segmentation, Brinthaguru Thangaraj, Karthick Palanisamy

Mansoura Engineering Journal

The process of accurately segmenting Urolithiasis and pulmonary nodules from medical images presents significant difficulties because of three main factors which include nonuniform intensity distribution and the presence of weak object borders and the uncertainty caused by anatomical structure overlaps. The study introduces F-Zinhger as a solution to these problems through its application of the Forest of Walks technology. The method uses superpixels as fundamental elements which form a multi-scale hypergraph that establishes hyperedges through three criteria: intensity similarity, spatial proximity, and Z-intuitionistic fuzzy hesitation to capture complex contextual connections. The system incorporates a random walk-based label propagation system. The …

Reliability-Oriented Spatiotemporal Machine Learning For High-Impact Power Outage Event Prediction, Marwa Gamal

Mansoura Engineering Journal

Power outages have become an increasing concern for modern power systems due to their impact on infrastructure reliability, economic activities, and public safety. The growing frequency of extreme weather events and the rising demand for electricity have made it more difficult to anticipate high-impact outage events. One of the main challenges in this context is the complex interaction between temporal patterns and geographic variations, which traditional methods often fail to capture effectively. This study develops a machine learning framework that combines temporal characteristics with geographic information to improve the prediction of high-impact power outages. Temporal features such as seasonal patterns, …

Recycling Of Plastic Into Fibers Using A Novel Machine Design And Analysis Of Fiber Characteristics, Mahmoud Khamees, Nasser Ayoub, Sabreen Addullah Abdelwahab, M. M. Maghawry

Mansoura Engineering Journal

This study presents a modified extrusion-based recycling system with an improved nozzle design and controlled fiber production capability. The machine was conceptualized and fabricated to efficiently process waste plastic and extrude it into fibers of varying diameters. The study focuses on evaluating how fiber diameter influences critical material properties. Microstructural analysis by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was conducted to investigate the morphology and fiber diameters, while tensile testing provided insights into mechanical performance, including strength and elongation. Moisture absorption tests were also performed to assess durability and environmental resistance. The results demonstrate clear correlations between fiber diameter and the examined …

Closing The Gaps: Improving Opioid Overdose Prevention In African American Communities Through Education And Community Engagement, Tara Clinding

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

African Americans continue to experience high rates of opioid mortality, emphasizing the need for culturally relevant community education and overdose prevention strategies. The purpose of this Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) quality improvement project was to implement and evaluate community-based opioid overdose prevention education designed for individuals with substance use disorder, family and friends, and community members. Guided by Betty Neuman’s Model, the education focuses on recognizing opioid overdoses, administering naloxone when indicated, and identifying community treatment and recovery resources. A pre- and post-test design was used to evaluate changes in participants' knowledge and confidence following a structured educational session. …