Digital Commons Network^™

Provision Of Formal Education To Nursing Staff: Kangaroo Mother Care Within Maternal-Child Units, Jessica Holly

Doctor of Nursing Practice Scholarly Project

Kangaroo mother care (KMC) is an evidence-based intervention that improves neonatal outcomes and reduces mortality in infants. KMC is not fully integrated into local hospital maternal-child departments and nursing professionals do not have a standard education offering concerning KMC. While the use of KMC is not entirely absent, nursing knowledge and understanding of its correct execution leads to lesser occurrences of KMC initiation. This scholarly project addresses nursing knowledge as a practice quality improvement. A literature review was completed, including searches through CINAHL, Merck Manuals, MEDLINE Plus Health Information, ProQuest, and UpToDate. A pretest, educational video, and posttest were then …

Cross-Curricular Content: Integrating Standards And Learning Objectives, Kristen Douglas

Art 895 Research Papers

This action research study takes a look at the opportunity art teachers have in utilizing other content standards and lesson objectives in their class, by using eighth grade math standards in an animation project as an example of this perspective. Within the study, we will see how integrating standards from another subject area in one’s own curriculum will effect project outcomes and student understanding in art.

A Big Supreme Court Win For Farm Animals, Lewis Bollard

General – Farm Animal Issues

The article reports on the May 2023 U.S. Supreme Court decision upholding California’s Proposition 12, a landmark farm animal welfare law, with implications for state and national animal protection efforts.

Volume Cxlii, Number 22, May 12, 2023, Lawrence University

The Lawrentian

No abstract provided.

Richy Reaper, John Douglas

Undergraduate B.F.A. Theses in Studio Art

No abstract provided.

Navigating The Context: Implementing Inquiry In The Middle School Social Studies Classroom, Juliann Noble Healy

Doctor of Education in Secondary and Middle Grades Education Dissertations

Abstract

Despite over a century of advocacy by social studies scholars and professionals and the development of curricular resources to promote inquiry-based learning (IBL) in K-12 social studies, inquiry is not a defining element of the K-12 social studies classroom (Saye, 2017). Teachers face significant barriers to the use of inquiry-based learning. In particular, contextual barriers such as curriculum breadth, high-stakes testing, and lack of context-specific resources are indicated (e.g., Konopack et al., 1994; Martell, 2020; Voet & Wever, 2016). However, recent research presents applications of IBL in K-12 social studies classrooms, which suggests the potential to overcome barriers. This …

A Computationally Designed Ace2 Decoy Has Broad Efficacy Against Sars-Cov-2 Omicron Variants And Related Viruses In Vitro And In Vivo, Brandon Havranek, Graeme Walker Lindsey, Yusuke Higuchi, Yumi Itoh, Tatsuya Suzuki, Toru Okamoto, Atsushi Hoshino, Erik Procko, Shahidul M. Islam

SKMC Student Presentations and Publications

SARS-CoV-2, especially B.1.1.529/omicron and its sublineages, continues to mutate to evade monoclonal antibodies and antibodies elicited by vaccination. Affinity-enhanced soluble ACE2 (sACE2) is an alternative strategy that works by binding the SARS-CoV-2 S protein, acting as a 'decoy' to block the interaction between the S and human ACE2. Using a computational design strategy, we designed an affinity-enhanced ACE2 decoy, FLIF, that exhibited tight binding to SARS-CoV-2 delta and omicron variants. Our computationally calculated absolute binding free energies (ABFE) between sACE2:SARS-CoV-2 S proteins and their variants showed excellent agreement to binding experiments. FLIF displayed robust therapeutic utility against a broad range …

Mechanobiology As A Tool For Addressing The Genotype-To- Phenotype Problem In Microbiology, Merrill E. Asp, Minh-Tri Ho Thanh, Subarna Dutta, Jessica A. Comstock, Roy D. Welch, Alison E. Patteson

Physics - All Scholarship

The central hypothesis of the genotype–phenotype relationship is that the phenotype of a developing organism (i.e., its set of observable attributes) depends on its genome and the environment. However, as we learn more about the genetics and biochemistry of living systems, our understanding does not fully extend to the complex multiscale nature of how cells move, interact, and organize; this gap in understanding is referred to as the genotype-to-phenotype problem. The physics of soft matter sets the background on which living organisms evolved, and the cell environment is a strong determinant of cell phenotype. This inevitably leads to challenges as …

Local Field Potentials In The Male Rat Nucleus Accumbens During Effort-Based Behavior, Celine Aliko, John Salamone, Alev Ecevitoglu

Honors Scholar Theses

Major depression is a devastating disorder that consists of multiple symptoms such as low mood and motivational dysfunction. It has been shown that motivational dysfunction can be studied in animal models by using effort-based choice paradigms, which vary in their response requirements. It has been reported that dopamine depletion in the nucleus accumbens decreases ratio-scheduled lever-pressing in a manner related to the size of the ratio requirement. One dopamine depleting agent is tetrabenazine (TBZ), which has been shown to decrease lever-pressing and induce low-effort bias. The current study aims to investigate behavioral and electrophysiological changes that occur with animals performing …

Fritz Lang's Critique Of Capitalism Through Body Language In "Metropolis", Nathan Bailey

Honors Theses

This honors thesis argues that Fritz Lang’s 1927 silent film Metropolis contains nonverbal narrative elements (including body language, architectural proxemics, and phallic imagery) that align the film with Marxist class structures. The film provides a moral epigram, “the mediator between head and hands must be the heart,” which this paper aims to define through a Marxist lens. This thesis narrates Metropolis’ verbal and nonverbal narratives through observing intertitles in the film alongside the elements that perplex the viewer and overload the senses. The aim of this paper is to notice where the head, hands, and heart make …

Mindfulness Practices In A First-Grade Classroom: Impact On Student Behavior And Student And Teacher Perceptions, Lesslie Picena

Masters of Education in Teaching and Learning

There has been a rising interest in examining the effectiveness of implementing mindfulness practices to improve students’ behavior. The purpose of this study was to measure the effects that implementing mindfulness practices had on first-grade students’ off-task behaviors during lessons and transitions and to understand students’ and their teacher’s perceptions of the mindfulness practices that were implemented. A mindfulness intervention was implemented for three weeks. Tally sheets and journal entries were gathered to record and reflect on student behavior. Post-intervention surveys, individual student interviews, and a teacher interview were utilized to gather the participants’ perceptions. Quantitative data was analyzed using …

Art Therapy As A Comprehensive Complementary Treatment For Parkinson’S Disease, Tom Ettinger, Marygrace Berberian, Ikuko Acosta, Alberto Cucca, Andrew Feigin, Danilo Genovese, Travis Pollen, Julianne Reiders, Rohita Kilachand, Clara Gomez, Milton Biagioni, Alessandro Di Rocco, Felice M. Ghilardi, John-Ross Rizzo

Department of Exercise Science Faculty Papers

Introduction: Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the second most prevalent neurodegenerative disease. Complementary and alternative therapies are increasingly utilized to address its complex multisystem symptomatology. Art therapy involves motoric action and visuospatial processing while promoting broad biopsychosocial wellness. The process involves hedonic absorption, which provides an escape from otherwise persistent and cumulative PD symptoms, refreshing internal resources. It involves the expression in nonverbal form of multilayered psychological and somatic phenomena; once these are externalized in a symbolic arts medium, they can be explored, understood, integrated, and reorganized through verbal dialogue, effecting relief and positive change.

Methods: 42 participants with mild to …

Synthesis, Characterization And Spectroscopic Studies Of Novel Donor-Acceptor Complexes, Shiyue Gao

Chemistry and Chemical Biology ETDs

Square-planar compounds of the (dichalcogenolene)Pt(diimine) series are possess unique photophysical properties that include long-lived excited state lifetimes, which result in their being potential candidates for numerous applications. These applications include solar energy conversion, photocatalysis, nonlinear optics, and photoluminescent probes of biological systems. The most interesting feature of the (dichalcogenolene)Pt(diimine) series of molecules is the bpydichalcogenolene ligand-to-ligand charge transfer (LL’CT) band. To better understand their photoluminescent decay mechanism, and understand their excited dark state properties, we have synthesized and characterized new compounds that include (Thp-bpy)Pt(CAT), (Thp2-bpy)Pt(CAT), (Thp-bpy)Pt(bdt), and (Thp2-bpy)Pt(bdt). Through interpretation of electronic absorption, resonance Raman, XAS, photoluminesce spectroscopy, in addition …

Personal Thoughts, Reflections, And Accounting, Caleb Colley

Honors Theses

This work consists of two portions. The first portion concerns the research, findings, and conclusions regarding various accounting-related topics. These topics include a reflection on the September 11 attacks and their impact on accounting and the United States in general, research on potential places to settle for my future career, an analysis of Pfizer Inc.'s financial performance in 2020 in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, and an interview with my mother regarding her previous experiences as a business professional. The second portion of this work pertains to several analyses of the Target Corporation from five perspectives. These topics consist …

Safety And Efficacy Of Fecal Microbiota Transplantation In Treatment Of Inflammatory Bowel Disease In The Pediatric Population: A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis, Mark Hsu, Kyaw Min Tun, Kavita Batra, Lubaba Haque, Tahne Vongsavath, Annie S. Hong Md

School of Medicine Faculty Research

Background and Aims: Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) has been increasingly studied in the inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) population. However, most studies have focused on the adult population, and the safety and efficacy of FMT in a pediatric population is less well understood. This systematic review and meta-analysis investigates the safety and efficacy of FMT in a pediatric IBD population.

Methods: A comprehensive literature search of publications published prior to 30 June 2022 was undertaken. Safety data, IBD-related outcomes, and microbiome analysis were obtained from these studies when accessible. Individual estimates of each study were pooled, and sensitivity analysis was conducted. …

Regulating Strategic Sovereign Wealth, Paul Rose

BYU Law Review

In an era of ascendant globalization, sovereign wealth funds were used by governments around the world – and, in particular, by governments with massive natural resource wealth or balance-of-trade surpluses – to invest widely in foreign markets. Sovereign wealth funds were products of the international economic order then in existence, adapted to a political and economic environment in which borders could be easily crossed and foreign assets seemed abundant and easily acquired. After the Financial Crisis, and with the increasing nationalization seen in the 2010s, this environment began to change. Both domestic and international forces spurred the development of new, …

The Impact Of A Design-Based Engineering Curriculum On High School Biology: Evaluating Academic Achievement And Student Perceptions Of Epistemology, Self-Efficacy, And Self-Determination In Life Science, Courtney Cox

Doctor of Education in Teacher Leadership Dissertations

Integration of the engineering design process (EDP) into the high school biology classroom may improve academic achievement, alter epistemological beliefs about learning science, and positively influence student perceptions of science self-efficacy and self-determination. This quasi-experimental research study tested these claims by implementing an EDP curriculum within two honors biology classes (n=36) at an independent high school in a large urban city in the Southeastern United States. Two additional honors biology courses at the school (n=34) were instructed using the department's traditional curricular resources. Achievement data were collected from both groups and compared for statically significant differences using independent t-tests …

Supporting Children Through Traumatic Loss: A Counseling Group For Children, Sara Swan

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

Loss happens within an instant, while grief is lifelong. Children who experience the loss of a close relationship in a traumatic way can negatively affect their mental and physical health, and academic and behavioral functioning, and have a higher mortality rate (Burns et al., 2020; Feigelman et al., 2017). Mental health professionals need to continue to advocate for children who have experienced traumatic loss with an increase in mental health services available to them. Literature is reviewed on grief, complicated grief (CG), traumatic grief, childhood traumatic grief and traumatic death are defined, types of loss, how grief is defined in …

School Counselors Treating Anxiety In Public School Settings: A Group Manual, Sarah Dyann Voss

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

As anxiety becomes more prevalent in children and adolescents, the demand for mental health resources has also increased. School counselors are highly trained mental health professionals who could be one of the answers to help close the gap of the demand for mental health resources. This review aims to analyze the benefits and effectiveness of school counselors treating anxiety in public school settings by utilizing small group interventions. Most public school settings have school counselors available for students, which is an opportunity for school counselors to provide mental health services. Several research studies have been conducted on this topic, showing …

A.I.M. Handbook Parent Handbook, Emery Palm

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

Students that are in special education receive a wide variety of services depending on their qualification. Special education encompasses all types of services including academics, speech and language, occupational therapies, and social and emotional learning skills. Students can receive social and emotional learning services for a wide variety of behaviors or concerns that are being seen and within these services there are a multitude of curriculums that fit the needs of a variety of different students. Based on current research there is a social skills curriculum that encompasses six different components in order to teach students to be a more …

Leading With Equity Through Action: The Theory Of Racial And Gender Equity Advancement In Rural Schools, Anna Gross

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

All students deserve an equitable education. Rampant misinformation has flooded the educational world, and society as a whole, turning the concept of “equity” into something that has become politically charged. However, all students are different, and differences must be acknowledged and celebrated to ensure all students receive the education they need to thrive both academically and socially.

The purpose of this study is to examine equitable practices in rural schools. Using a constructivist paradigm, a grounded theory research approach was utilized through collection of qualitative data to theorize why some rural schools are further advanced than other rural schools of …

Gender, Sexuality, And Lgbtq+ Identities In General Education Literature Courses: Three Major Conceptual Frameworks, Josiah Coleman

Online Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines how three major conceptual frameworks can allow instructors of literature courses to explore, define, and utilize their understanding of queerness. For instructors who possess little experience in queer discourse, the three major conceptual frameworks – LGBTQ+ identities, gender critical paradigms, and the sexual episteme – are outlined, with major subfields, lenses, and authors detailed for further research. To demonstrate the veracity of utilizing these three major conceptual frameworks in the existing pedagogical praxis of instructors, a study was conducted. The study was a survey of six instructors who taught general education literature courses in the past five …

Assessment Of Natural Roost Availability And Artificial Roost Preference By Indiana Bats In Scott County, Kentucky, Shannon Kerry Howe

Online Theses and Dissertations

In addition to using natural roosts, Indiana bats (Myotis sodalis) form maternity colonies in artificial roosts such as rocket boxes and bark-mimic structures. However, few Indiana bat study systems contain multiple artificial roost types alongside natural roosting options. I sought to analyze roost use on a landscape with multiple roost types and determine the effects of reproductive condition on roost type and canopy closure selection. I also characterized the forest overstory composition and determined the quantity and quality of Indiana bat roosting habitat across the landscape. My field site was Veterans Memorial Wildlife Management Area (VMWMA) in Scott County, Kentucky, …

Mitochondrial Dysfunction: At The Nexus Between Alcohol-Associated Immunometabolic Dysregulation And Tissue Injury, Robert W. Siggins, Patrick M. Mcternan, Liz Simon, Flavia M. Souza-Smith, Patricia E. Molina

School of Medicine Faculty Publications

Alcohol misuse, directly or indirectly as a result of its metabolism, negatively impacts most tissues, including four with critical roles in energy metabolism regulation: the liver, pancreas, adipose, and skeletal muscle. Mitochondria have long been studied for their biosynthetic roles, such as ATP synthesis and initiation of apoptosis. However, current research has provided evidence that mitochondria participate in myriad cellular processes, including immune activation, nutrient sensing in pancreatic β-cells, and skeletal muscle stem and progenitor cell differentiation. The literature indicates that alcohol impairs mitochondrial respiratory capacity, promoting reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation and disrupting mitochondrial dynamics, leading to dysfunctional mitochondria …

21st Century Political Agronomy: Between Collapse And Apocalypse In The Capitalist World System, Harrison Raskin

Honors Scholar Theses

Examinations of the causal chain between ecological impacts and food shortages reveal significant impending global disturbances. This paper draws a causal link between ecological impacts and low food productivity which will lead to food insecurity and economic crises in the near term. Further, this paper argues that food insecurity may lead to the collapse of the capitalist world system. This threat is contrasted with “business as usual” climate models which, rather than depicting the collapse of the capitalist world system, depict its persistence throughout the collapse of the world ecology.

Ethical Considerations Of Clinical Research In Emergency Care Settings: A Review, Adith Velavan

Honors Scholar Theses

Emergency and acute care settings are some of the most volatile and high intensity areas of any healthcare operation. Better understanding of systems and treatments in these spaces are critical to improving outcomes for the high risk patients that are treated there. Clinical research serves as a cornerstone of modern medical research, and is critical to the further improvement of clinical care in these settings. This thesis serves to explore the ethicality of such research given the constraints of emergency medicine settings. Not only does this thesis provide a strong foundation regarding the history and current practices of clinical research, …

Stitching The Pieces Together, Julie C. Nissi

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

Design Of University Small-Scale Dairy Processing Facility, Philip J. Hildebrand, Joshua Arejola, Alicia Andersen, Terry Howell Jr, Tami M. Brown-Brandl

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

This project was assigned to research the feasibility and value of implementing a dairy processing facility on the campus of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. The facility would process milk produced from cows under the same roof and will serve as an educational experience for Nebraska dairy farmers, UNL students, and K-12 students in the Lincoln-Lancaster County area. If the project is successful and replicated across the state, this facility could have a significant impact on the reduction of milk transportation costs in the Nebraska dairy industry.

The project began with researching milk processing methods and steps from production to consumption. …

Home-Site Advantage For Host Species–Specific Gut Microbiota, Daniel D. Sprockett, Jeff Price, Anthony Juritsch, Robert J. Schmaltz, Madalena V. F. Real, Samantha L. Goldman, Michael Sheehan, Amanda E. Ramer-Tait, Andrew H. Moeller

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Mammalian species harbor compositionally distinct gut microbial communities, but the mechanisms that maintain specificity of symbionts to host species remain unclear. Here, we show that natural selection within house mice (Mus musculus domesticus) drives deterministic assembly of the house-mouse gut microbiota from mixtures of native and non-native microbiotas. Competing microbiotas from wild-derived lines of house mice and other mouse species (Mus and Peromyscus spp.) within germ-free wild-type (WT) and Rag1-knockout (Rag1^−/−) house mice revealed widespread fitness advantages for native gut bacteria. Native bacterial lineages significantly outcompeted non-native lineages in both WT and Rag1 …

The Effects Of Verbal Fluency Interventions: Phonemic Versus Semantic Fluency Outcomes In Parkinson's Disease, Brian Connelly

Dissertations, Theses, and Projects

Verbal fluency (VF) tasks are well-established and widely used tools in clinical assessment and research settings to evaluate executive functioning skills. They consist of verbally generating as many different items as possible that either begin with a specified letter (i.e., phonemic) or belong to a category (i.e., semantic) within 60 seconds. Due to deficits in executive functioning, individuals with Parkinson’s disease (PD) have increased difficulty with phonemic compared to semantic fluency. Although VF tasks are commonly used as intervention tools within speech-language pathology clinical practice, there is limited research investigating their therapeutic benefit. The purpose of this study was to …