Digital Commons Network^™

Reinventing Indigenous West African Fabric Design For Contemporary Commercial Application, Richard Acquaye, Naa Omai Sawyerr, Raphael Kanyire Seidu

Journal of Urban Culture Research

This study explores and reflects on the potential of global commercial application of indigenous West African fabric design in the middle to high-end interior textiles and surfaces. The study adopts design theory which encourages innovation and creativity in concepts for effective solutions. Theoretically, ideas have been utilized as a method of bringing to light the veiled aspects of practice in indigenous West African fabric production alongside its diverse and complex cultural connections. There is a practical component of the study utilizes a series of ‘collaborations’ with technology, new textile materials, color resources and global trends to generate forms or visual …

Rasulan As A Javanese Slametan Tradition On Compromising The Changing Of Society, Sartini Sartini, Supartiningsih Supartiningsih, Sriyulita Pramulia Panani, Adita Nurdia Damayanti, Anwar Ibrahim Triyoga

Journal of Urban Culture Research

Rasulan is a tradition in Java; it's one form of Javanese Slametan (a ritual meal). This research aims to describe the Rasulan, explains the role of the worldview and how the elements of culture, religion and the spirit of the nationality are compromised and changed therein. This research is a mix of library and field studies, utilizing the theory of worldview. Results show that Rasulan is not a religious tradition, but a harvest celebration, taking the form of gratitude in the agrarian society. It consists of world views of space, time, causality and self-other relationships, which constructs how people …

Arts-Based Interventions To Enhance The Quality Of Life And Cognition Of The Elderly With Mild Cognitive Impairment, Khanobbhorn Sangvanich, Itthipol Tawankanjanachot, Sookjaroen Tangwongchai

Journal of Urban Culture Research

This art activities program was designed to enhance the aesthetics, mood, cognition, and quality of life (QoL) of elderly patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). The control group was given a single session of MCI knowledge, whereas the intervention group attended weekly art activities, based on visual thinking strategies, combined with cognitive development of aesthetic experience and contemplative arts for six weeks. There was no difference between the Thai Geriatric Depressive Scale (TGDS) scores or Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) scores between the two groups. However, the intervention group showed statistically significant improvement of Quality of Life, compared to the control …

Contemporaneity Decolonizing Knowledge & Independency, Jay Koh

Journal of Urban Culture Research

This article discusses the platform and selected texts from Journal of Urban Culture Research (JUCR), in relation to contemporary turns from the 60s on participation and diversity in responses to the making of an open society to the 80s on decolonization of knowledge from the enlightenment trajectory. Only lately, these ideas of ’decolonization’ has gained traction in our regions and we need to be careful not to mix the meaning of this term with the fight for independence after the WWII by colonized nations or criticism of the concept of orientalism and the construction of racial stereotypes. Discussed turns on …

A Legislative Call-To-Action: Applying Capture Theory To Combat The Risk Of Private Industry’S Excess Influence Over The Fda’S Regulation Of Livestock Antibiotics, Nathaniel Richey

Kentucky Journal of Equine, Agriculture, & Natural Resources Law

No abstract provided.

Paving The Way For Synthetic Intrinsically Disordered Polymers For Soft Robotics, Orkid Coskuner-Weber, Elif Yuce-Erarslan, Vladimir N. Uversky

Molecular Medicine Faculty Publications

Nature is full of examples of processes that, through evolution, have been perfected over the ages to effectively use matter and sustain life. Here, we present our strategies for designing intrinsically disordered smart polymers for soft robotics applications that are bio-inspired by intrinsically disordered proteins. Bio-inspired intrinsically disordered smart and soft polymers designed using our deep understanding of intrinsically disordered proteins have the potential to open new avenues in soft robotics. Together with other desirable traits, such as robustness, dynamic self-organization, and self-healing abilities, these systems possess ideal characteristics that human-made formations strive for but often fail to achieve. Our …

Limosilactobacillus Fermentum 3872 That Produces Class Iii Bacteriocin Forms Co-Aggregates With The Antibiotic-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus Strains And Induces Their Lethal Damage, Vyacheslav M. Abramov, Igor V. Kosarev, Andrey V. Machulin, Tatiana V. Priputnevich, Eugenia I. Deryusheva, Ekaterina L. Nemashkalova, Irina O. Chikileva, Tatiana N. Abashina, Alexander N. Panin, Vyacheslav G. Melnikov, Natalia E. Suzina, Ilya N. Nikonov, Marina V. Selina, Valentin S. Khlebnikov, Vadim K. Sakulin, Vladimir A. Samoilenko, Alexey B. Gordeev, Gennady T. Sukhikh, Vladimir N. Uversky, Andrey V. Karlyshev

Molecular Medicine Faculty Publications

LF3872 was isolated from the milk of a healthy lactating and breastfeeding woman. Earlier, the genome of LF3872 was sequenced, and a gene encoding unique bacteriocin was discovered. We have shown here that the LF3872 strain produces a novel thermolabile class III bacteriolysin (BLF3872), exhibiting antimicrobial activity against antibiotic-resistant Staphylococcus aureus strains. Sequence analysis revealed the two-domain structural (lysozyme-like domain and peptidase M23 domain) organization of BLF3872. At least 25% residues of this protein are expected to be intrinsically disordered. Furthermore, BLF3872 is predicted to have a very high liquid-liquid phase separation. According to the electron microscopy data, the bacterial …

Yield And Composition Variations Of The Milk From Different Camel Breeds In Saudi Arabia, Amr A. El-Hanafy, Yasser M. Saad, Saleh A. Alkarim, Hussein A. Almehdar, Fuad M. Alzahrani, Mohammed A. Almatry, Vladimir N. Uversky, Elrashdy M. Redwan

Molecular Medicine Faculty Publications

With the increasing interest in the identification of differences between camel breeds over the last decade, this study was conducted to estimate the variability of milk production and composition of four Saudi camel breeds during different seasons. Milk records were taken two days per week from females of Majahem, Safra, Wadha, and Hamra breeds distributed over Saudi Arabia. The milk yield during winter indicated that the weekly average of the Wadha breed was significantly lower (27.13 kg/week) than Majahem and Hamra breeds. The Safra breed had the lowest milk yield (30.7 kg/week) during summer. During winter, the Hamra breed had …

Advanced Phytochemical-Based Nanocarrier Systems For The Treatment Of Breast Cancer, Vivek P. Chavda, Lakshmi Vineela Nalla, Pankti Balar, Rajashri Bezbaruah, Vasso Apostolopoulos, Rajeev K. Singla, Avinash Khadela, Lalitkumar K. Vora, Vladimir N. Uversky

Molecular Medicine Faculty Publications

As the world’s most prevalent cancer, breast cancer imposes a significant societal health burden and is among the leading causes of cancer death in women worldwide. Despite the notable improvements in survival in countries with early detection programs, combined with different modes of treatment to eradicate invasive disease, the current chemotherapy regimen faces significant challenges associated with chemotherapy-induced side effects and the development of drug resistance. Therefore, serious concerns regarding current chemotherapeutics are pressuring researchers to develop alternative therapeutics with better efficacy and safety. Due to their extremely biocompatible nature and efficient destruction of cancer cells via numerous mechanisms, phytochemicals …

Figure Set Update: An Inquiry-Based Module Aligned With The 4dee Framework For Teaching About Functional Responses And Biological Control, Rosny Jean, Linda Auker, Suann Yang, Jeremy Hsu

Open Educational Resources

THE ISSUE

Biological control agents are used in a wide range of contexts to limit damage from pests. However, the broader ecological consequences of such agents often are unclear before ecological risk assessments are performed. This Figure Set guides students to think through potential consequences of using biological control agents, and then uses a specific study to challenge students to interpret results from laboratory and caged field experiments. This Figure Set also introduces the concept of functional responses to students.

FOUR DIMENSIONAL ECOLOGY EDUCATION (4DEE) FRAMEWORK

• Core Ecological Concepts:
• Organisms
• Resources and regulators
• Communities
• Predation
• Ecology Practices:
• Quantitative reasoning and …

A Critical Approach To Engineering Mathematics Activities For Sustainable Development, Matheus Oliveira De Andrade, Mariam Makramalla

Practice Papers

Engineering projects are frequently experienced through the complexity of knowledge co-production between experts and local communities. This involves an ability to work critically and creatively within unfamiliar epistemologies, drawing from quantitative, social and scientific methods to realise high-impact solutions. In this work-in-progress paper, we put forward a prototype for a case-control study aiming to evaluate student buy-in and learning outcomes for a cross-cultural implementation of critical mathematics approaches contextualised by sustainability challenges. We outline and discuss aspects of mathematical modelling activities that can scaffold an environment where human subjectivity amplifies the quality and relevance of quantitative arguments. As proof-of-concept, we …

Analysis Of Peer Influence On Adolescents And Adults, Melody Xiong, Hillary C. Vang

Concordia Journal of Communication Research

Peers are a huge part of life and affect people in many different ways. In adolescence and adulthood, peers have different kinds of impacts. The researchers chose to research how peer influence can affect the decisions, performance and attitudes of adolescents and adults. Specifically, researchers analyzed how lifestyle decisions influenced by peers affect mental health and how the effects differ from gender and age. Participants of the study were selected to fit the three age groups needed for this study and responses were collected via electronic survey. Throughout this study, the relationship that peer influence has with mental health, positive …

Friday Luncheon Keynote, The Hon. James Blanchard, Rachel Poynter

Canada-United States Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Evaluating Benthic Macroinvertebrate Populations In Response To Scouring Events In The Trinity River, Ca, Liam Hay, Michael W. O'Neil, Chloe Pieper-Wasem

Environmental Science & Management Senior Capstones

River systems across California have been impacted by appurtenant structures such as dams and diversions. These structures have had an adverse impact on Benthic invertebrate (BMI) communities by regulating river systems and changing the natural hydraulic pulses that follow seasonal precipitation. Benthic invertebrates are a critical food resource for salmonids and serve as an indicator of ecosystem health. Our study was interested in seeing the effects of scouring events on BMI in the Trinity River of Trinity County, C.A. Following a large precipitation event that occurred in the region in December 2022, an influx of water entered the river through …

Measuring New Growth Of Kinnikinnick And Brown Elfin Butterfly Abundance At The Ma-Le’L & Lanphere Dunes: Implications For The Management Of The Seaside Hoary Elfin Butterfly, Aidan Jack Murphy, Verenice Elizabeth Sanchez, Leila M. Rahimi, Magdalena A. Villasenor

Environmental Science & Management Senior Capstones

The study assessed changes in inflorescence length of kinnikinnick (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi) new growth and the abundance of brown elfin butterflies (Callophrys augustinas) at the Ma-le’l and Lanphere Dunes. The research took place at the Ma-le’l and Lanphere Dunes in Humboldt County where a surrogate species for the seaside hoary elfin–the brown elfin–is abundant. In the larval stage, the brown elfin feeds on the new growth of kinnikinnick. Our study set out to analyze the food resource availability for brown elfin butterfly larvae, as they are forage on the tender leaves associated with the new growth of kinnikinnick …

Impact Of Covid-19 Nationwide Lockdowns And Unlock Phases In India On River Water Quality Of Upper Part Of The Ganga River, Dhara Kakwani, Abha Kumari, Kumar Suranjit Prasad, Bablu Prasad

Applied Environmental Research

The river water quality index (RWQI) of the upper Ganga canal has been computed to assess the effect of lockdown and unlock phases lead down by COVID-19 in India. Geospatial distribution of RWQI from January 2019 to December 2021 in the study area revealed significant impacts of lockdown on water quality. However, unlock phases (post lockdown) have deteriorated water quality since August 2020 and reached to actual conditions of the river by August 2021. To evaluate the lockdown as a management strategy to clean the river, other factors were reviewed including rainfall data, migration, and other activities. The results revealed …

Introduction, Oliver Chandler

GFA Refereed Monographs

While the history of the formation of a modern British guitar repertoire around the central figure of Julian Bream is known in broad brushstrokes, we lack a thoroughgoing, technical understanding of the particular idiom that Bream’s composers developed. Important in the nascent stages of the guitar’s modernist evolution, for example, was its relationship to twelve-tone serialism. Through close readings of individual works by Reginald Smith Brindle (El polifemo de oro, 1956), Denis ApIvor (Variations, 1958), Thomas Wilson (Three Pieces, 1961; Soliloquy, 1969), and Richard Rodney Bennett (Impromptus, 1968; Sonata, 1983), I map the …

Vibrio Bacteria Surveillance Post-Hurricanes Ian And Nicole: How Climate Change Affects Pathogens, Lillian Walker

Theses & ETDs

Vibrio is a genus of Gram-negative bacteria typically found in warm, brackish water. Some Vibrio species can infect humans, such as Vibrio vulnificus, also known as flesh-eating bacteria, which infects roughly 50 to 100 people and kills 16 of them annually in the United States, mostly in Gulf Coast states such as Florida[1], [2]. In fact, Florida alone had 74 cases and 17 deaths in 2022, an increase from 34 cases and 10 deaths in 2021[3]. This increase is thought to be correlated with the Category 4 storm Hurricane Ian that made landfall in Cayo Costa in late September of …

Artificial Light At Night Disrupts Male Dominance Relationships And Reproductive Success In A Model Fish Species, Lauren E. Closs, Muhammad Rahmad Rayan, Amin Sayyari, Ian Mayer, Finn-Arne Weltzien, Dianne M. Baker, Romain Fontaine

Biological Sciences Research

Environmental light is perceived and anticipated by organisms to synchronize their biological cycles. Therefore, artificial light at night (ALAN) disrupts both diurnal and seasonal biological rhythms. Reproduction is a complex physiological process involving integration of environmental signals by the brain, and release of endocrine signals by the pituitary that regulate gametogenesis and spawning. In addition, males from many species form a dominance hierarchy that, through a combination of aggressive and protective behavior, influences their reproductive success. In this study, we investigated the effect of ALAN and continuous daylight on the behavior and fitness of male fish within a dominance hierarchy …

Predicting Antimicrobial Resistance Of Bacterial Pathogens Using Time Series Analysis, Jeonghoon Kim, Ruwini Rupasinghe, Avishai Halev, Chao Huang, Shahbaz Rezaei, Maria J. Clavijo, Rebecca C. Robbins, Beatriz Martínez-López, Xin Liu

School of Computing Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is arguably one of the major health and economic challenges in our society. A key aspect of tackling AMR is rapid and accurate detection of the emergence and spread of AMR in food animal production, which requires routine AMR surveillance. However, AMR detection can be expensive and time-consuming considering the growth rate of the bacteria and the most commonly used analytical procedures, such as Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) testing. To mitigate this issue, we utilized machine learning to predict the future AMR burden of bacterial pathogens. We collected pathogen and antimicrobial data from >600 farms in the …

A Digital Human System With Realistic Facial Expressions For Friendly Human-Machine Interaction, Anthony Condegni, Weitian Wang, Rui Li

School of Computing Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Digital human technology can be applied to many areas, especially at the interaction of intelligent machines, digital 3D, and human-machine interaction. This paper develops a digital human system that enhances friendly interaction between humans and machines through synchronized and realistic facial expressions, based on tracking data from a human user. The details of this paper can be summarized in three parts. First, customize and build a 3D model for the digital human. Second, create a parameterized 3D model for different facial animations. Third, track the user for synchronizing the facial expressions of the customized digital human. The experimental results and …

Laboratories Of The Future: Tribes And Rights Of Nature, Elizabeth A. Kronk Warner, Jensen Lillquist

Utah Law Faculty Scholarship

From global challenges such as climate change and mass extinction, to local challenges such as toxic spills and undrinkable water, environmental degradation and the impairment of Earth systems are well documented. Yet, despite this reality, the U.S. federal government has done little in the last thirty years to provide a comprehensive solution to these profound environmental challenges; likewise, significant state action is lacking. In this vacuum, environmental legal advocates are looking for innovative environmental solutions to these challenges. Against this backdrop, rights of nature have increasingly gained traction as a possible legal tool to help protect the natural environment from …

Why Stop Grazing The Climate Commons?, Brigham Daniels

Utah Law Faculty Scholarship

Many have argued that climate change is the textbook example of a tragedy of the commons. Assuming that is correct, to make headway on climate change, we would expect an enforceable agreement that provides for global collective action. The tragedy of the commons assumes that those who cut back when others do not are—to use the formal language of game theorists—suckers. So, the last thing we would expect is a surge of unilateral action. Contrary to theory, for the past decade, unilateral climate action has flourished among governments, businesses, other organizations, and individuals.

Is the number of climate suckers growing …

Entangled Mangrove Roots: The Shrimp Industry, Ancestral Afro-Descendant People, And Community Resistance In Esmeraldas, Ecuador, O'Philia Le

Pitzer Senior Theses

Mangroves are one of the most important ecosystems because of the many services they provide on a local and global scale, but in contrast, are one of the most threatened by anthropogenic activities at a global level. Being sources of food for various kinds of fish, crustaceans, and mollusks, they are essential for the economy, culture, and livelihood of locals in Esmeraldas, Ecuador. This thesis takes an environmental justice approach in the discussion of the loss of mangroves in Esmeraldas, Ecuador. While toxic industries may not be apparent at first, environmental injustice prevails in adverse human health effects, environmental degradation, …

Idaho's Law Of Seduction, Michael L. Smith

Faculty Articles

Seduction is a historical cause of action that permitted women's fathers to bring suit on their daughters' behalf in sexual assault and rape cases. This tort emerged long ago when the law's refusal to recognize women's agency left this as the only means of recovering damages in these cases. As time went on, the tort evolved, and women were eventually permitted to bring lawsuits for seduction on their own behalf. Today, most states have abolished seduction, along with other torts permitting recovery for damages arising from intimate conduct. One could be easily forgiven for thinking that such an archaic tort …

Is, Ought, And The Limited Competence Of Experts, Adam J. Macleod

Faculty Articles

The moral innovators whom C. S. Lewis criticized in The Abolition of Man supposed that they could draw imperatives out of their superior understanding of sentiment and instinct. They assumed that to know what human beings want to do is to know what human beings should do. But people want to do all sorts of things that are irrational, pointless, harmful, and even downright evil. And people want inconsistent things. So the innovators are incoherent. As Lewis correctly affirmed, no amount of knowledge about nature or the world is sufficient by itself to direct us to do what is good …

Gun Range Immunity: An Argument Against Legalized Nuisance And Non-Governmental Takings, Match Dawson

Faculty Articles

People exhausted by the increasingly fast-paced life and loud noises of the big city will often seek refuge in the solitude of quiet country living. Perhaps naive, the romantic thought of waking to the scenic views of an early morning sunrise burning an orange hue across the pasture or the sweet sounds of a Bachman's sparrow singing from the birdhouse placed neatly within view of the kitchen window is abruptly squashed when rural landowners fall victim to the excessively loud sport of outdoor firearm shooting.

Protecting rural landowners' rights to the quiet use and enjoyment of their property has been …

Neuroimmune-Mediated Alteration Of Acute Alcohol Exposure In The Mesolimbic Dopamine System, William T. Harris, P. E. Williams, Scott C. Steffensen

Library/Life Sciences Undergraduate Poster Competition 2023

2nd place open house

Dopamine (DA) transmission is a key player in the rewarding aspects of ethanol (EtOH) as well as EtOH dependence.

The current dogma is that DA transmission is increased during acute EtOH exposure via the inhibition of ventral tegmental area (VTA) GABA neurons and that the excitation of VTA GABA neurons during withdrawal results in decreased DA transmission.

Much recent evidence indicates that neuroimmune interactions may mediate this process. •

Microglia, the major neuroimmune effector in the brain, may be a key mediator in this process by releasing cytokines following activation.

Macrophages, a major immune effector in …

“Like A Whole Thing”: Dialogic Sensemaking In One Sixth Grade Classroom, Catherine Bienkowski

West Chester University Doctoral Projects

This qualitative study used a constructivist approach to better understand how students in one sixth grade classroom participate in dialogic discussions while making sense of texts. Participants in the study attended a suburban, public, high-performing middle school in Pennsylvania. Drawing on Sociocultural Learning Theory and Transactional Reading Theory, the researcher observed one English Language Arts class. Nine students participated in five reading events over a period of two months. Data collection, informed by linguistic ethnographic methods, included audio recordings, transcriptions of reading events, fieldnotes, and transcriptions of one on one and small group interviews. In Vivo coding of the interview …

La Sagrada Medicina De La Madre Tierra: Traditional Ancestral Preservation In Pomona, Ca Community Gardens, Lizbeth Valdivia-Jauregui

2023 Claremont Colleges Library Undergraduate Research Award

For thousands of years before colonization, Indigenous ancestral knowledge has preserved, honored, and nurtured the sacredness of Mother Earth through kin-based institutions knitted together in a cosmic web of lineages and tribes (Henrich, 2020). The purpose of this grounded theory community-centered study was to examine how traditional ancestral knowledge is transmitted within community gardens in the city of Pomona, CA. Participants (N = 16) were interviewed using open-ended qualitative interviews that followed Charmaz’s (2014) constructivist grounded theory framework, in order to explore participants’ perspectives and personal experiences in possibly viewing community gardens as spaces of cultural transmission (Charmaz, 2014). …