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Implementation Of Time Series And Neural Networks For Forecasting Agricultural Prices In The Irish Market: A Comparative Analysis Of Milk, Beef, And Potatoes., César Augusto Núñez Jan 2025

Implementation Of Time Series And Neural Networks For Forecasting Agricultural Prices In The Irish Market: A Comparative Analysis Of Milk, Beef, And Potatoes., César Augusto Núñez

ICT

Agricultural price volatility represents a central challenge for the Irish agri-food sector, affecting the stability of producers, cooperatives, and policymakers. This study aimed to compare three predictive approaches applied to strategic commodities such as milk, beef, and potatoes: a traditional statistical time series model (SARIMA) and two deep learning architectures (RNN and LSTM). Using historical price series collected over a decade, the models were developed and evaluated following a rigorous methodological process that included data preparation, algorithm training, and validation of results using performance metrics widely used in time series research. The findings show that the SARIMA model was most …


Distributing Composition: Rhetorical Agency In First-Year Writing, Elizabeth Novotny Jan 2025

Distributing Composition: Rhetorical Agency In First-Year Writing, Elizabeth Novotny

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

This project centers on engaging students in class lessons related to rhetorical agency. Typically understood as the capacity to act, within rhetoric, I define agency as the capacity to make meaning. In most traditional Western conceptions, agency is primarily located with the individual rhetor. However, these views were increasingly challenged throughout the later twentieth century as theorists from various traditions came to understand that discussing our agency as solely our own doing was insufficient. In contrast to an individualistic understanding of agency, theories that characterize rhetorical agency as more fragmented have evolved, where, instead of writing and rhetoric being …


Near-Infrared Hemicyanine And Bodipy Sensors For Monitoring Mitochondrial Viscosity In Live Cancer Cells, Drosophila Melanogaster Larvae, And Adpkd Kidney Tissue, Joseph Peters Jan 2025

Near-Infrared Hemicyanine And Bodipy Sensors For Monitoring Mitochondrial Viscosity In Live Cancer Cells, Drosophila Melanogaster Larvae, And Adpkd Kidney Tissue, Joseph Peters

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Two near-infrared fluorescent sensors, sensor A and sensor B, were synthesized and characterized. Sensor A was a hemicyanine derived structure, and sensor B was a BODIPY derived sensor. The sensors were tested to measure their ability to monitor viscosity, and sensor A was used to monitor viscosity in live cells. Both sensors were found to be effective in monitoring the viscosity level through optical measurements with glycerol. Sensor A was found to be successful in monitoring mitochondrial viscosity in HeLa MBA-MD-453 and MDA-MB-231 cell lines. It was also successful in monitoring viscosity in Drosophila melanogaster larvae as well as …


Investigating Dimensions Of Social Vulnerability To Wildfire: A Case Study Of Western Montana, Ella Brodowski Jan 2025

Investigating Dimensions Of Social Vulnerability To Wildfire: A Case Study Of Western Montana, Ella Brodowski

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Communities across the US are facing increased wildfire risks due in part to historic fire suppression efforts, a warming climate, and an influx of people residing in wildland urban interface (WUI) landscapes. Because of these increasing risks, there have been growing concerns about the social factors that can increase individual and community vulnerability to wildfires. This research adds to the discussion of social vulnerability by examining how people living in a geographic area with heightened wildfire risk think about the ways in which people can be more or less vulnerable to wildfires. Using semi-structured interviews, round table discussions, and field …


Land Rematriation: Utilizing The National Register Of Historic Places And Developing Tribal Homeland Territories For The Restoration Of Historic Landscapes And Sovereignty, Robert E. Hazen Jan 2025

Land Rematriation: Utilizing The National Register Of Historic Places And Developing Tribal Homeland Territories For The Restoration Of Historic Landscapes And Sovereignty, Robert E. Hazen

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Land rematriation and cultural revitalization are crucial to addressing the ongoing impacts of settler colonialism on Indigenous communities, particularly for the Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. The National Register of Historic Places and federal recognition processes have traditionally marginalized Indigenous practices and land claims, yet, as I argue in this thesis, they hold potential for reappropriation in support of sovereignty and heritage. This thesis argues that integrating Indigenous methodologies, geospatial research, and archival analyses can forge a path toward effective land rematriation efforts. My findings reveal culturally significant sites connected to the historic village of Getegitigaaning, helping …


Life Cycle Assessment Of Renewable Hydrocarbon Fuels Produced By The New Cool Gas To Liquid (Cool Gtl) Process, Elochukwu Okoye Jan 2025

Life Cycle Assessment Of Renewable Hydrocarbon Fuels Produced By The New Cool Gas To Liquid (Cool Gtl) Process, Elochukwu Okoye

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

The Cool Gas-to-Liquid (Cool GTL) process converts biogas and captured CO2 into renewable hydrocarbon fuels, contributing to GHG emissions reduction in transportation. This report explains a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) study that was completed to evaluate the environmental impact of different feedstocks, hydrogen sources, and electricity inputs. The analysis considers biogas from food waste, manure, and landfill sources, as well as biogenic, fossil, and direct air capture (DAC) CO2 feedstocks. Results show that biogas pathways provide the greatest GHG reductions, with the best case (food and manure biogas + solar hydrogen + solar electricity) achieving a net-negative GWP …


Barbie Vlogger As Teen Influencer For Little Girls, Brilynn A. Janckila Jan 2025

Barbie Vlogger As Teen Influencer For Little Girls, Brilynn A. Janckila

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Mattel’s YouTube Barbie Vlogs series (2015-2022) targets 6–11-year-old girls with short narratives and prosocial messages addressing their prevalent interests and everyday experiences. While the vlog is clearly an attempt by Mattel to appeal to a market sector that includes both little girls and their Millennial parents, this analysis examines Barbie Vlogger as a social media influencer in order to explore how little girls learn to become older girls through the performance of teenage girlhood as enacted in the Barbie Vlogs. What is Barbie doing in the vlogs to show little girls who a teen girl is and what she …


Microbial Inactivation And Spray Drying For The Recovery Of Single-Cell Protein From Chemically Deconstructed Polyethylene Terephthalate, Reeba Elizabeth Reji Jan 2025

Microbial Inactivation And Spray Drying For The Recovery Of Single-Cell Protein From Chemically Deconstructed Polyethylene Terephthalate, Reeba Elizabeth Reji

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) is one of the most widely used polymers in plastics packaging. However, the increasing demand for PET has created challenges in waste disposal. Previous research has shown that PET can be deconstructed using ammonium hydroxide (CDPET). Microorganisms capable of utilizing the product as a sole carbon source can be converted to single-cell protein (SCP). A custom microbial inactivation unit was developed to ensure the safety and stability of generated SCP. Our study evaluated the effect of exposure time (45–60 minutes) at 140 °C with the goal of maximizing microbial inactivation. Our findings suggest that microbial inactivation can …


The Animated Frontier: Fluctuations Of Power Across Time And Space In Flows Of U.S. And Japanese Animated Media, Kendall Belopavlovich Jan 2025

The Animated Frontier: Fluctuations Of Power Across Time And Space In Flows Of U.S. And Japanese Animated Media, Kendall Belopavlovich

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

This project critiques the historical and contemporary relationships between the U.S., Japan, and marginalized groups through the lens of animation. The U.S. and Japan share a complex history, from the opening of Japan during the Edo period to events like Pearl Harbor and the atomic bombings, which shaped their present-day alliance. Furthermore, the U.S. and Japan are the central nodes in flows of animation, where both nation states have dominated the global market at various points in animation’s history. Today, Japan's soft power in media is significant, and the flow of power between these nations has influenced media forms and …


Examining Video-Based Learning In Higher Education, Kay (Catherine) L. Tislar Jan 2025

Examining Video-Based Learning In Higher Education, Kay (Catherine) L. Tislar

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Instructional video has proliferated recently due to the explosion in popularity of TikTok and YouTube. However, most videos are not developed using principles derived from research and instructional design theories that have been tested with content presented in other types of media (de Konig et al., 2018). Many of these principles are based on the Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning, including research on the seductive detail effect; seductive details are “interesting but irrelevant details that are added to a passage to make it more interesting” and have been shown to harm learning (Harp & Mayer, 1997). This has motivated the …


Direct Methane Capture Via Aerobic Methanotrophs, Waaseyaaban Landgren Jan 2025

Direct Methane Capture Via Aerobic Methanotrophs, Waaseyaaban Landgren

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Methane, a greenhouse gas with global warming potential 80 times greater than carbon dioxide, heavily contributes to global warming. Removing 1 Gt of atmospheric methane by 2050 would limit global temperature increase from reaching 1.5°C. Currently, biotrickling filter systems for removing atmospheric methane via methanotrophs exist, but not for very low methane concentrations (< 1 v%). Current research work at the University of Washington isolated and engineered a microbe strain which thrives at 500 ppmv methane, solving one obstacle in making this technology feasible. In this thesis, techno-economic analysis and environmental life cycle assessment conducted on this process have assessed its economic feasibility, greenhouse gas reduction potential, and possible areas of improvement. Study results show that at 500 ppmv methane, this process could remove atmospheric methane at a cost of $3,992-5,224 per tCH4. The ideal case also produces annual net reduction in warming potential by 276-311 tCO2e per process unit deployed.


Patient Handling Interventions And Their Role In Reducing Musculoskeletal Disorders Among Healthcare Workers, Ashley L. Hawke Jan 2025

Patient Handling Interventions And Their Role In Reducing Musculoskeletal Disorders Among Healthcare Workers, Ashley L. Hawke

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are prominent among healthcare professionals, especially those who perform manual patient handling tasks. Assistive devices (e.g., slider sheet, gait belt, mechanical lift) have been used for patient handling. However, the effectiveness of these devices in reducing MSD risk factors is varied. Additionally, the relationship between healthcare workers’ acceptability of patient handling devices and organizational policies that facilitate or hinder widespread implementation is not well understood. The goal of my dissertation was to conduct a comprehensive analysis of existing patient handling devices and their role in mitigating MSD risk among healthcare workers. For Study 1, I conducted a …


Identifying Patterns In Avian Plasma Metabolites For Use In Comparing Between-Site Differences In Habitat Quality, Katherine A. Brouwer Jan 2025

Identifying Patterns In Avian Plasma Metabolites For Use In Comparing Between-Site Differences In Habitat Quality, Katherine A. Brouwer

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Habitat loss and degradation are especially important considerations for migratory songbirds, since they depend on a variety of distinct habitats within different life phases (such as breeding, wintering, and migration) that are widely dispersed across a spatial scale. Additionally, abundance of migratory songbirds has been in severe decline, making habitat maintenance and recovery of particular interest as a research avenue. Identifying high quality habitats across a bird’s annual range is therefore of increasing importance and represents fundamental information for guiding management decision making. Free-floating metabolites found in blood are frequently used to determine short-term mass changes in birds and have …


Indigenous-Industrial Heritage: Centering Indigenous Voices In Minnesota's Iron Range, Larissa A. Juip Jan 2025

Indigenous-Industrial Heritage: Centering Indigenous Voices In Minnesota's Iron Range, Larissa A. Juip

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Industrial heritage refers to the material remains, sites, landscapes, and practices associated with industrial and extractive activities. As a field, it has historically been concerned with the conservation, management, and interpretation of industrial sites and activities and forms a central narrative within Minnesota's museums. Yet such accounts often privilege object-centered narratives while silencing the presence, knowledge, and contributions of Indigenous and Descendant communities, obscuring their enduring relationships to extractive landscapes. In recent decades, critiques of traditional industrial heritage approaches have identified gaps in the discipline related to the exclusion of marginalized populations, including Indigenous Peoples. Minnesota is home to eleven …


Imi—Interventions For Controlling Myopia Onset And Progression 2025, Mark A. Bullimore, Kathryn J. Saunders, Rigmor C. Baraas, David A. Berntsen, Zhi Chen, Audrey Wei Lin Chia, So Goto, Jun Jiang, Weizhong Lan, Nicola S. Logan, Raymond P. Najjar, Jan Roelof Polling, Scott A. Read, Emily C. Woodman-Pieterse, Noémi Széll, Pavan K. Verkicharla, Pei Chang Wu, Xiaoying Zhu, James Loughman, Manbir Nagra, John R. Phillips, Huy D.M. Tran, Fuensanta A. Vera-Diaz, Jason Yam, Yue M. Liu, Sarah E. Singh, Christine F. Wildsoet Jan 2025

Imi—Interventions For Controlling Myopia Onset And Progression 2025, Mark A. Bullimore, Kathryn J. Saunders, Rigmor C. Baraas, David A. Berntsen, Zhi Chen, Audrey Wei Lin Chia, So Goto, Jun Jiang, Weizhong Lan, Nicola S. Logan, Raymond P. Najjar, Jan Roelof Polling, Scott A. Read, Emily C. Woodman-Pieterse, Noémi Széll, Pavan K. Verkicharla, Pei Chang Wu, Xiaoying Zhu, James Loughman, Manbir Nagra, John R. Phillips, Huy D.M. Tran, Fuensanta A. Vera-Diaz, Jason Yam, Yue M. Liu, Sarah E. Singh, Christine F. Wildsoet

Research Outputs: 2025-Present

Myopia is recognized as a significant public health problem, particularly in East and Southeast Asia. This has led to the development and evaluation of a range of interventions to slow its progression and delay its onset. Since the publication of the 2019 International Myopia Institute’s review of interventions for controlling myopia onset and progression, treatment options have continued to grow in number. This article reviews the efficacy of such interventions under five categories: optical, pharmacological, environmental (behavioral), colored light, and surgical. In summarizing the efficacy of mature technologies, only randomized controlled trials were considered, although such data are very limited …


Morphtogo: A Video Classification Model For Predicting Protein Functions From Conformational Morphs, Dylan William Bock Jan 2025

Morphtogo: A Video Classification Model For Predicting Protein Functions From Conformational Morphs, Dylan William Bock

Honors Program Theses

Protein function prediction is a crucial task in bioinformatics, traditionally approached through sequence-based, structure-based, or interaction network models. These models, however, fail to capture transient conformations that occur during large-scale conformational changes. MorphToGO proposes a novel methodology of function prediction with the development of a video classification model to analyze morph animations. The image classification portion of the model utilizes the pretrained EfficientNetV2 model to extract features from animation frames, and the video portion consists of a modified GRU architecture for sequence-to-sequence embedding regression to predict the protein’s functional semantics. A custom bidirectional cosine loss function was developed to handle …


Southern Adventist University Annual Report 2024-2025, Southern Adventist University Jan 2025

Southern Adventist University Annual Report 2024-2025, Southern Adventist University

Annual Reports

The Annual Report for Southern Adventist University for 2024 to 2025.


A Virus Of The Mind: The Neurological Impact Of Neonatal Herpes Simplex Virus Infection, Abigail Jeanne Dutton Jan 2025

A Virus Of The Mind: The Neurological Impact Of Neonatal Herpes Simplex Virus Infection, Abigail Jeanne Dutton

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

The ability of herpes simplex virus (HSV) to establish lifelong latency in sensory neurons makes it one of the most pervasive viruses worldwide. Although most HSV infections are asymptomatic or cause limited cutaneous symptoms, some give rise to serious central nervous system (CNS) manifestations. Both primary HSV infection and subsequent reactivation events can cause viral replication and spread within the brain, ultimately leading to pathologic inflammation and direct CNS damage. In addition to fulminant presentations of HSV encephalitis, subclinical HSV CNS infections have been implicated in neurodevelopmental, cognitive, and neurodegenerative impairment. To model the lifelong effects of subclinical HSV infection, …


Leveraging Epigenomics And Transcriptomics To Develop High-Dimensional Biomarkers Of Neuroinflammation, Steven C. Pike Jan 2025

Leveraging Epigenomics And Transcriptomics To Develop High-Dimensional Biomarkers Of Neuroinflammation, Steven C. Pike

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

Neuroinflammation is a critical physiological phenomenon implicated in most neurological disorders, either as a cause or a consequence of pathology. Our understanding of neuroinflammation is limited by the inability to directly profile the cells of interest. Thus, developing biomarkers of neuroinflammation is clinically urgent as we know neuroinflammation correlates with patient outcomes and treatment success. The recent advances in “omics” technologies, particularly epigenomics and transcriptomics, provides the opportunity for high-dimensional profiling of biospecimens for potential biomarkers. Within this dissertation, I demonstrate that biomarkers obtained from “omics” platforms can detect neuroimmunological phenomena in clinical and preclinical settings. In chapter one, DNA …


Congolese Refugee Narratives Of Belonging, Grief, And Cultural Continuity In Appalachia, Kayla Davis Jan 2025

Congolese Refugee Narratives Of Belonging, Grief, And Cultural Continuity In Appalachia, Kayla Davis

Theses and Dissertations

This research examines the communicative challenges that Congolese refugees face after resettlement, particularly as they strive to reconstruct a sense of belonging in the United States that reflects their experiences in either their home country or secondary countries where they endured protracted displacement in refugee camps. Narrative qualitative research methods were used to conduct interviews with five Congolese refugees in Appalachia. Through qualitative thematic and lexical analysis derived from the interviews, the study reveals patterns of linguistic isolation, community continuity, and emotional displacement. A key finding is that participants often conceptualize community not as a geographic entity, but as an …


Behavioral Response Of House Flies (Diptera: Muscidae) To 3 Bittering Agents, Panchalie B. Gunathunga, Bethia H. King, Christopher J. Geden Jan 2025

Behavioral Response Of House Flies (Diptera: Muscidae) To 3 Bittering Agents, Panchalie B. Gunathunga, Bethia H. King, Christopher J. Geden

Faculty Articles, Papers, and Other Scholarship

House flies, Musca domestica L., are pests at livestock facilities. House fly numbers are controlled mainly by manure management and chemical controls, like use of toxic baits. Some toxic baits contain denatonium benzoate as a bittering agent, to avoid poisoning of children. House fly behavioral response to denatonium benzoate was examined, using 2 different diluents, sucrose solution or orange juice. Response of flies to quinine and sucrose octaacetate, 2 other bittering agents, was also examined in sucrose. Sucrose is the sweetener in commercially available toxic house fly baits. The proboscis extension response of both male and female flies was significantly …


Mercury Concentrations, Health, And Marine Food Consumption Across Four Eastern Caribbean Populations: Insights From A Novel Community-Based Study, Russell Fielding, Catherine Brown, Jessica Dutton, Martin S. Forde, Heather Harewood, Lisa Hunt, Catherine Macdonald, Cameron Mewhirter, Vincent Reid, Madison Smith, Holly Taylor, Katelyn Zimmerman Jan 2025

Mercury Concentrations, Health, And Marine Food Consumption Across Four Eastern Caribbean Populations: Insights From A Novel Community-Based Study, Russell Fielding, Catherine Brown, Jessica Dutton, Martin S. Forde, Heather Harewood, Lisa Hunt, Catherine Macdonald, Cameron Mewhirter, Vincent Reid, Madison Smith, Holly Taylor, Katelyn Zimmerman

Gulf and Caribbean Research

Mercury (Hg), as an environmental pollutant, can have harmful effects on human health. A common way that people are exposed to Hg is through seafood consumption. This project was designed to investigate Hg exposure through seafood consumption and its health effects among adults in 4 Caribbean countries: Barbados (n = 117), Grenada (n = 90), St. Lucia (n = 126), and St. Vincent & the Grenadines (n = 77). We applied a novel, community—based method, which involved recruiting and paying local barbers and hairstylists to collect hair samples from their clients who consented to join the project as participants. Participants …


Amazing Bunnies, Wenyu Cao Jan 2025

Amazing Bunnies, Wenyu Cao

Celebrating Writers and Writing in our Communities

No abstract provided.


The Impact Vsco Girls Had On Society, Shyla Mosier Jan 2025

The Impact Vsco Girls Had On Society, Shyla Mosier

Celebrating Writers and Writing in our Communities

No abstract provided.


Rheological Characterization And Printability Of Sodium Alginate–Gelatin Hydrogel For 3d Cultures And Bioprinting, Mohan Kumar Dey, Ram V. Devireddy Jan 2025

Rheological Characterization And Printability Of Sodium Alginate–Gelatin Hydrogel For 3d Cultures And Bioprinting, Mohan Kumar Dey, Ram V. Devireddy

Faculty Publications

The development of biocompatible hydrogels for 3D bioprinting is essential for creating functional tissue models and advancing preclinical drug testing. This study investigates the formulation, printability, mechanical properties, and biocompatibility of a novel Alg-Gel hydrogel blend (alginate and gelatin) for use in extrusion-based 3D bioprinting. A range of hydrogel compositions were evaluated for their rheological behavior, including shear-thinning properties, storage modulus, and compressive modulus, which are crucial for maintaining structural integrity during printing and supporting cell viability. The printability assessment of the 7% alginate–8% gelatin hydrogel demonstrated that the 27T tapered needle achieved the highest normalized Printability Index (POInormalized = …


A Conversation On Feminist Digital Humanities, Jessica Frazier, Tamar Carroll, Shweta Sachdeva Jha, Leandra Zarnow Jan 2025

A Conversation On Feminist Digital Humanities, Jessica Frazier, Tamar Carroll, Shweta Sachdeva Jha, Leandra Zarnow

Journal of Feminist Scholarship

The forum below came into being out of a curiosity to learn more about feminist scholars’ creation and use of digital humanities projects, platforms, and media to forward their research and teaching. Participants discussed the possibilities and perils of feminist digital humanities projects as they shared their unique experiences and perspectives. Larger trends in the conception, design, and operation of feminist digital humanities are visible in the conversation that follows—notably all three participants expressed a desire to work with digital media as a means of producing and sharing feminist knowledge and resistance narratives with broader audiences.


Death And Inheritance: How Meanings Of Money Are Drawn From Everyday Life, Kendall Coney Jan 2025

Death And Inheritance: How Meanings Of Money Are Drawn From Everyday Life, Kendall Coney

Sociology Honors Projects

Probate is a legal process to distribute a deceased person’s assets involving a personal representative who administers the estate on behalf of the deceased. It is uniquely situated in the intersection of a procedurally exhaustive process and the deeply emotional experience of losing a loved one, where legal procedures are imposed on relational contexts. I draw on in-depth interviews with personal representatives from four counties in Minnesota to expose the dissimilar way personal representatives understand the meaning of inheritance money, which in turn influenced how they understood and navigated the probate process. The lack of a clear pattern found in …


The Role Of Post-Cloacal Gland Biofluorescence In Male-Male Communication In Plethodon Cinereus, Kasey Watterson Jan 2025

The Role Of Post-Cloacal Gland Biofluorescence In Male-Male Communication In Plethodon Cinereus, Kasey Watterson

Masters Theses

Biofluorescence is increasingly recognized as a potentially important form of visual communication across a wide range of taxa, yet its ecological and behavioral function remains largely untested in many terrestrial species. In the red-backed salamander (Plethodon cinereus), fluorescence is a sexually dimorphic trait most strongly expressed in males, particularly around the cloacal region and ventral side of the tail, areas that are often displayed during territorial contests and courtship. Rival males also direct behaviors like cloacal investigation toward these fluorescent regions, suggesting a potential signaling function. Since fluorescence is often displayed during territorial contests, I hypothesized that fluorescence in male …


I Live In A Place Called Hoopa, K'Oden White Jan 2025

I Live In A Place Called Hoopa, K'Oden White

Celebrating Writers and Writing in our Communities

No abstract provided.


Idolatry In Ancient Rome Can Be A Teaching Tool Today, Garrett S. "Faustino" Miller Oblsb Jan 2025

Idolatry In Ancient Rome Can Be A Teaching Tool Today, Garrett S. "Faustino" Miller Oblsb

Obsculta

This essay analyzes idolatry from the context of both the early Christians before the 3rd century as well as the interpretation of the modern day through looking at the early Christian martyrs and their defiance of Rome as an act of abstaining from the sin of idolatry while seeing how contemporary Christians can abstain from idolatry in the modern era, learning from ancient wisdom how to battle this sin.