Digital Commons Network^™

Lake Of Privilege, Tony Martello

Intertidal

No abstract provided.

Microbial Literacy, Equity, And Sustainability At Cal Poly: A Policy Framework With University Housing As A Pilot Case, Joseph B. Fewel

Biological Sciences

Microorganisms play a fundamental role in human health, environmental systems, and the functioning of built environments, yet they remain largely absent from sustainability and public policy discussions. This project proposes a framework for integrating microbial literacy, equity, and health into institutional decision-making, using California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) as a case study and university housing as a pilot site for implementation. Drawing on interdisciplinary literature in microbiology, public health, environmental justice, and sustainability, as well as policy analysis and stakeholder interviews, this project examines how campus systems, including housing, ventilation, sanitation, food systems, and waste management, shape microbial exposure …

Catalyzed Chemical Recycling Of Pet Plastic Waste, Irfan Oyon Chowdhury, Caiden Scott Figlioli

Materials Engineering

Plastic waste accumulation and continued reliance on fossil fuel-based polymer feedstocks remain major challenges in the plastics industry. While mechanical recycling is widely used, repeated thermal processing, contamination, and polymer degradation reduce recycled plastic quality. Chemical recycling offers an alternative by depolymerizing plastics into reusable monomers that can produce materials with properties closer to virgin plastics.

This study investigated the glycolysis of post-consumer poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) using ethylene glycol to produce bis(2-hydroxyethyl) terephthalate (BHET). Zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles were synthesized by solution precipitation and used with 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([Bmim]Cl) as a co-catalyst system. PET glycolysis was performed using 2.00 g …

Polysaber: A Custom Reactive Lightsaber Soundboard, Pedro B. Medeiros

Computer Engineering

The PolySaber project was developed as a custom reactive lightsaber control system built as a fully custom PCB design. The purpose of the project was to create a lower-cost and more customizable alternative to commercially available lightsaber soundboards while simultaneously providing hands-on experience in PCB design, embedded systems development, and hardware integration. Commercial lightsaber soundboards are expensive, proprietary, and difficult for hobbyists to customize. The PolySaber project addresses this by creating a modifiable hardware platform built around the ESP32 microcontroller. The system supports programmable firmware, RGB NeoPixel blade control, motion sensing, reactive swing and clash effects, onboard audio amplification, and …

Off-Grid Cabin Hydroelectric Generator, Keller Feltman, Lance Savatgy, River Perino, Jesse Valencia

Mechanical Engineering

This project developed a portable hydroelectric generator intended to provide low-power electricity generation for an off-grid cabin in Alpine County, California. The system was designed to utilize naturally occurring creek flow to generate electrical power while remaining portable, durable, and environmentally conscious.

The final system consists of an axial-flow turbine, belt-driven generator subsystem, waterproof electronics enclosure, aluminum support frame, and integrated wildlife protection screening. Engineering analysis was performed to estimate hydraulic power availability, turbine performance, drivetrain requirements, and component lifespan. These analyses guided the selection and development of the final design.

Throughout prototype testing, several design modifications were required. Initial …

Resource Assessment Report No. 7: Shark Bay Invertebrate Resource - 2024 Assessment, Jason How, Inigo Koefoed, Rachel Marks, Scott E. Evans, Sharon Wilkin

Resource Assessment Reports

The Shark Bay Invertebrate Resource (Resource) is accessed by three managed commercial fisheries; the Shark Bay Prawn Managed Fishery (SBPMF), the Shark Bay Scallop Managed Fishery (SBSMF) and the Shark Bay Blue Swimmer Crab Managed Fishery (SBCMF). Additionally, blue swimmer crabs are taken by recreational fishers through a variety of methods, though the overall level of boat-based catch is relatively low (~ 7.8 t). The SBSMF and SBCMF fisheries are quota managed and primarily retain their target species of scallops and crabs, respectively. The SBPMF is an effort-managed fishery that targets brown tiger prawns (BTP; Penaeus esculentus) and western king …

Phl 110e.50: Introduction To Ethics, Armond J. Duwell

University of Montana Course Syllabi, 2026-2030

No abstract provided.

Assessing Rural Homelessness: A Mixed-Methods Case Study, Matthew Lyons, Ashley Feierstein, Christy Storey, Akilah Hairston, Jonathan Jones, Jada Brown, Sarah H. Cross

Journal of Rural Social Sciences

Rural homelessness represents a significant public health and human rights challenge, but research on homelessness in the United States has predominantly focused on urban settings. This case study describes a mixed-methods assessment of the prevalence, causes, and consequences of homelessness in a rural county. Through both surveys and interviews with stakeholders from multiple sectors (including both service providers and those experiencing homelessness), we built a rich picture of the scale and experiential dimensions of homelessness within the county. Here, we present our research methods, the main findings of each primary data collection arm, and the actionable conclusions drawn from the …

Computational Modeling To Evaluate Bipolar Flexible Electrode Designs For Use In Sciatic Nerve Stimulation, Krystyna S. Allman

Master's Theses

Peripheral nerve stimulation is clinically used to manage pain, rehabilitate motor function, and promote nerve regeneration. The sciatic nerve is often studied for stimulation due to its accessibility and clinical relevance. A conventional nerve cuff electrode is the least invasive method for nerve stimulation, but the mismatch of mechanical properties of the electrode with the nerve tissue can cause damage to the nerve and the electrode itself. This study investigated a novel bipolar, gold nanowire-based cuff electrode design and its ability to selectively activate fibers in the rat sciatic nerve at varying interelectrode spacings. In COMSOL, A finite element model …

Cloud Tank: Virtual Reality Performance Instrument For Embodied Audiovisual Remixing, Asya Ulger

Computer Science Senior Theses

Traditionally, live audiovisual performances are made behind a desk using a laptop and an audio controller. This setup restricts the performer’s movements and separates the artist from their work. Moreover, it narrows what counts as the performance to the output alone — the audience is preconditioned to treat the projected image and sound as the whole event, and not the artist producing it. Cloud Tank challenges this by positioning the performer’s body as the instrument, using virtual reality. As the performer, I mix spatialized audio and drive beat-aligned, reactive video layers through hand movement and hand-pose recognition. The audiovisual output …

Controlling The Narrative:Copyright’S Derivative Rights Doctrine & Semiotic Disobedience In The Age Of Ai, John Tehranian

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

This Article argues that copyright’s derivative rights doctrine—long treated as a technical mechanism of market control—has operated as a powerful but underexamined tool of epistemic governance. As the doctrine’s scope has expanded, it has increasingly privileged dominant narratives while recasting resistive ones as acts of infringement. Drawing on historical and contemporary case studies—from the largely forgotten copyright disputes over the English translations of Mein Kampf and Bambi on the eve of World War II to the infamous stand-off between Wall Street’s Charging Bull and Fearless Girl statues—the Article demonstrates how derivative rights have been deployed to suppress what Sonya Katyal …

Who's Afraid Of Copyright And Ai?, Deborah R. Gerhardt

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

Copyright and AI need not be a copyright no man’s land. Recent decisions by the Copyright Office have gotten so much media attention that many creators are unsure if they can secure copyright protection if they use AI as a creative tool. The proposed creative control paradigm can help us all tackle the challenge of determining when works created with the assistance of AI are copyrightable. Instead of relying on long-established nuanced precedent for protecting works generated with new technology, the Copyright Office asserts that any content generated with assistance from AI tools is unprotectable. This position is radically inconsistent …

Artificial Personhood: The Implications Of Recognizing The Legal Personhood Of Artificialintelligence, Daniel C. Borges

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

Artificial intelligence (AI) is here in a big way. As society grapples with the implications of this profound new technology, the question of whether AI entities should be granted independent legal recognition, akin to human personhood, has emerged as a pivotal topic in jurisprudence. This Article explores the foundations, evolution, and implications of AI personhood, addressing philosophical perspectives, the development of personhood as a legal fiction (with specific emphasis on corporate personhood), and the need for AI personhood to counter the risks posed by rapidly developing AI technology. It defines the "AI person" as one whose legal recognition furthers a …

La Evolución Del Estilo De Naoko Takeuchi En Las Ilustraciones De Personajes Femeninos De Sailor Moon, Manuela Elizabeth Rodríguez González

GDI. Revista de investigación de Género, Diseño e Innovación

Este estudio analiza la evolución técnica y estilística de Naoko Takeuchi en sus representaciones femeninas presentes en las ilustraciones de Sailor Moon, mediante su transición y combinación con técnicas digitales, dentro del contexto de la industria del manga, anime y merchandising en diferentes desde su creación en los años noventa hasta su actualización más reciente en 2023. A partir de un análisis comparativo de artbooks, ilustraciones de alta resolución y notas de la autora, complementado con fuentes secundarias como artículos, libros y blogs especializados, se organizaron los materiales en tres períodos cronológicos para estudiar su evolución artística. Los …

Letter From The Mcte Vice President, Kel Sassi

Language Arts Journal of Michigan

No abstract provided.

La Espiritualidad: Transmitting Peruvian Culturo-Spiritual Elements Into Occidental Systemic Spaces, Deisy Amorin-Woods

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

This paper is a decolonising, Indigenous qualitative inquiry that integrates elements of critical autoethnography, narrative methods and conceptual analysis to explore how Peruvian Andean cosmology can inform contemporary systems thinking and family therapy practice. Writing as a mestiza, a Peruvian migrant in Australia, the author traces the lived experience of cultural erosion within Western, individualistic contexts and her reconnection with ancestral Andean teachings. These teachings—rooted in reciprocity, ecological attachment, collective responsibility and relational balance—are presented as living epistemologies that offer timely contributions to working therapeutically. The author examines core Andean concepts including ayll (kinship-based community), ayni (sacred reciprocity), Yachay (aprenderes …

The Historical Persistence Of Working-Class Culture: How Laborers Created The Ethical Foundation Of Western Civilization, Kenneth Atkinson

Faculty Publications

This article highlights four historical events that shape our present: the world’s first industrial strike in ancient Egypt to protest workers’ health and safety; working-class efforts to improve labor conditions during the Roman Republic and Middle Ages through strikes and the creation of guilds; the social justice activism of the prophets of Western religions (all working-class folks!); and the creation of the selfie and the transition from a culture of character to our present obsession with celebrities and individualism that began during the Renaissance. Each case highlights unique features of working-class culture, working class reactions to societal changes, and the …

Infinite Lives, Infinite Deaths, Jonathan Chua

Perspectives in the Arts and Humanities Asia

No abstract provided.

The Philippines At The 2025 Frankfurt Book Fair, Jonathan Chua

Perspectives in the Arts and Humanities Asia

No abstract provided.

The Development Of The Daughter-Guarding Scale: An Exploratory And Confirmatory Factor Analytic Study, Ray Garza, Farid Pazhoohi

School of Psychology

Fathers represent one of the earliest opposite-sex relationships for daughters, and it has been suggested that fathers may shape their daughters' developmental trajectory. Fathers are often stricter with their daughters compared to sons in monitoring and correcting behaviors, most notably in the avenue of social and sexual monitoring. Nonetheless, there are no valid measurement tools for capturing the different factors associated with daughter-guarding by fathers. The current study proposed an instrument for addressing daughter-guarding as reported by fathers. In Study 1, an exploratory factor analysis showed that 3-underlying factors were present in daughter-guarding, such as social monitoring of friends, guarding …

“I Will Experience This Trauma Over And Over Again”: Sexual And Gender-Based Violence, Forced Migration And Structural Violence, Jenny Phillimore, Karen Block, Hannah Bradby, Hoayda Darkal, Lisa Goodson, Anna Papoutsi, Cathy Vaughan

School of Psychology

Forced migration has reached unprecedented levels as millions are forced to seek refuge from conflict, persecution, and violence. This exodus includes women enduring the traumas of displacement alongside sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV). Upon reaching supposed places of refuge, they encounter the structural violence of immigration and asylum regimes. Against this backdrop, the intersection of SGBV, forced migration, and structural violence emerges as an urgent area of study. Drawing from extensive qualitative interviews in Australia, Sweden, and the United Kingdom, we set out to examine the impact of structural violence on the lives of forced migrant survivors of SGBV. The …

Socio-Ecological Models As A Framework For 21st-Century Genetic Counseling, Shana L. Merrill, Rebecca Mueller

College of Life Sciences Faculty Papers

Socio-ecological models and the related concepts of micro-, meso-, and macro-level practice are commonly used in the fields of social work and public health yet have not been thoroughly conceptualized for application to genetic counseling practice, research, and training. The field of genetic counseling is currently undergoing significant expansion with more genetic counseling training programs, greater variation in genetic counselor job roles, and genetic counselors practicing in more globally dispersed regions. It is therefore a critical time to conceptualize and tailor relevant theoretical frameworks to unify and guide the evolving field of genetic counseling. In this paper, we posit that …

Long-Covid And Cognition, Mychael Bruce

Dissertations

COVID-19 is an evolving virus that can harm the body’s respiratory and cardiovascular systems. Directly related to COVID-19 are individuals who do not recover from their initial infection, making them long haulers. Long-COVID is transitioning from a range of isolated phenomena to higher prevalence rates in patients who contracted COVID-19. Many individuals report issues with cognitive function, referred to as ‘brain fog’, that affect memory, attention, and even language skills. This literature review addresses the available research on Long-COVID and how persistent infection correlates with cognitive difficulties. It aims to explain the neurobiology of Long-COVID and how Long-COVID interacts within …

Evaluation Of Neuroplastic Changes In Psychological Intervention And Contemporary Treatments Of Depression, Taylor Severance

Dissertations

Major depressive disorder is one of the most prevalent mental health disorders worldwide. There is a vast range of treatment options for depression, with varying levels of effectiveness. Recent treatments for depression have expanded, increasing alternative treatments, and it is unknown which treatments have the largest impact on depression. This research was designed to examine the treatments of depression, with a focus on psychotherapy and contemporary treatments such as ketamine, psilocybin, and transcranial magnetic stimulation. A literature review was conducted to assess treatment outcomes and neuroplastic changes in these interventions, as well as combinations of the interventions. Data were evaluated …

Uplifting Youth Voice Through Multi‑Level Features To Make A Splash For Positive Youth Development, Sylvia Y. Gutierrez, Kellie A. Walters, Jayne A, Fulkerson, Nancy Sherwood, Eydie Kramer-Kostecka

Journal of Youth Development

This study explored how a multicomponent health promotion program for pre-adolescent girls could be adapted to support positive youth development across diverse cultural and community contexts. In summer 2022, trained research staff conducted six focus groups with 27 girls from urban and rural communities in the Midwestern United States. Participants reviewed the original program curriculum and provided feedback on program activities, structure, relationships, and implementation strategies. Sessions were audio recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed thematically using qualitative software and manual review. Girls provided feedback on multiple program components, resulting in 12 themes aligned with eight established features of positive developmental …

The Comparative Chemical Analysis Of Colored Henna, Vani D. Bhagwandeen

Student Theses

Henna, a natural dye derived from Lawsonia inermis, is widely used for temporary body art, hair coloring, and cultural decorative practices such as Mehendi. Traditional henna produces a reddish-brown stain through lawsone, a naphthoquinone chromophore that binds to keratin in skin, hair, and nails (Badoni Semwal et al., 2014; de Groot, 2013; Kumar Singh et al., 2015). Commercial henna products have increasingly incorporated synthetic dyes, pigments, and glitter additives to produce a broader range of colors and effects (Blair et al., 2004; Manso et al., 2017; Blackledge & Jones, 2007). Despite their prevalence, limited forensic research has examined the …

Walking The Path Of Conocimiento: Understanding And Navigating Workplace Conflict Through A Chicana Feminist Lens, Elisa A. Ortega-Schultz

Dissertations

The growing presence of Latinas in the U.S. workforce underscores the need for deeper understanding of their workplace experiences. Latinas represent one of the fastest growing segments of the labor force; however, research consistently shows that this growth is not matched by equitable access to leadership, compensation, or culturally responsive workplace environments. Latinas continue to experience persistent barriers related to pay inequity, career advancement, cultural belonging, and overall well-being.

Conflict frameworks that account for the unique experiences of Latinas are needed, as dominant approaches rooted in neutrality, procedural efficiency, and Western individualism often fail to account for the embodied, relational, …

Trace: Temporal Rhetorical Analysis And Consistency Evaluation For Legislative Speech, David Hernandez

Master's Theses

Legislators frequently discuss the same policy issues across multiple hearings and legislative sessions, sometimes maintaining consistent positions and other times modifying or reframing their stance over time. Understanding how these positions evolve is important for analyzing political discourse and democratic accountability, yet identifying such shifts at scale remains difficult.

We introduce TRACE (Temporal Rhetorical Analysis and Consistency Evaluation), a system built on the Digital Democracy Database (DDDB) for detecting rhetorical inconsistency in California legislative hearing testimony. TRACE organizes utterances into speaker-anchored timelines indexed by bill and session, then applies hybrid semantic retrieval — combining dense BGE embeddings with BM25 lexical …

Urban Sacred Grove: A Visioning For Collective Care, Preservation, Environmental Justice, And Resilience, Oluwadara A. Ojugbele

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

My capstone explores how the concept of sacred groves—a community-based practice of conserving forest areas for cultural, spiritual, or religious purposes—can be reimagined as a framework for urban environmental stewardship and community care. Sacred groves have historically varied across time and place but consistently serve as protected spaces that honor divine forces, ancestors, and community values. In the Yoruba context, groves demarcate lush forests as abodes for oriṣas (divine forces) and spiritual beings, often containing shrines and artifacts that embody cultural beliefs. My capstone draws on the sacred grove concept and aims to illustrate how urban communities might adopt sacred …

Spatiospectral Lobes And Radiation Modeling Of Partially Coherent Supersonic Jet Noise, Tyce Wayne Olaveson

Theses and Dissertations

Noise fields generated by high-performance military jets are known to contain acoustic structures that differ from their simulated and lab-scale counterparts. These differences may limit current noise control efforts, which are designed and tested at scale before being considered for full-scale aircraft. One such noise structure is the presence of spatiospectral lobes, which appear as multiple spectral peaks at single microphone locations and multiple radiation lobes in field reconstructions. This dissertation uses data collected from the T-7A jet noise measurement to characterize the spatial behavior of the spatiospectral lobes as well as their first time-domain description. A multiple wavepacket decomposition …