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Press Releases 2023

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Studying Changes In Covid-19 Vaccination Attitudes By Race Across Major Socio-Political Events, May Oo Khine

Quantitative Social Science Undergraduate Senior Theses

This thesis explores the dynamics of COVID-19 vaccination attitudes on Twitter across three specific events, focusing on changes observed within different racial groups. Understanding the shifts in public sentiment regarding COVID-19 vaccination is crucial for developing targeted interventions to improve vaccine uptake and decision-making among individuals from diverse racial backgrounds. To conduct this study, I first collected tweets from one month before and after each selected event. I built two machine learning classifiers to perform sentiment and emotion analysis on these collected tweets. Additionally, an AI facial recognition model was utilized to categorize Twitter users by race. This enabled the …

Using Infectious Disease Simulations To Model, Quantify, And Predict The Impact Of Self-Quarantine And Vaccination On Mpox Spread Across The United States, Amar Johanna Scherzer

Quantitative Social Science Undergraduate Senior Theses

In this paper, I build a data-driven theoretical model that reproduces the epidemiological (epi) curve of the mpox outbreak in the United States. The general framework presented in this paper considers the susceptible (S), infected (I), and recovered (R) stages of an mpox infection through an SIR model of disease spread. I use vaccination, transmissibility, recovery, and self isolation rates as parameters in my SIR model as well as a lag-time to account for the delay in vaccination roll-out. By using real-world data to inform estimates of the susceptible population and mpox transmission characteristics, I am able to simulate an …

Observed Error Monitoring As An Index Of Theory Of Mind, Kipras Varkala

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

To thrive within our social environment, we must understand and learn from those around us. Theory of Mind (ToM) refers to our ability to put ourselves in other’s shoes to comprehend what they are thinking. Observed error monitoring (OEM) refers to detecting others’ mistakes in real time, which is ultimately thought of as a mechanism that supports our learning from those mistakes without personally having committed them. Current findings suggest that both ToM and OEM are dependent on one another when engaging in social learning. We first emulate the mental state of others to understand their goals motivations. We then …

Archaeogaming And The Re-Use Of Digital Archaeological Materials: Generating Serious Games For The Villas Of Roman Sicily, Kaitlyn Kingsland

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

With 10 million copies sold and 500 million dollars of revenue, the 11th installment of Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed series, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey (2018), showed how a videogame based on ancient Greek history and archaeology can make a splash in popular culture and that the distant past can become an extinguishable source of infinite engaging gaming narratives. As pedagogic and research counterparts to videogames of this kind, serious games and archaeogames focusing on Greek and Roman civilizations move from different premises, though aspiring to the same level of success. Serious games, created for a primary purpose other than sole entertainment, have …

Sarcasm Detection In English And Arabic Tweets Using Transformer Models, Rishik Lad

Computer Science Senior Theses

This thesis describes our approach toward the detection of sarcasm and its various types in English and Arabic Tweets through methods in deep learning. There are five problems we attempted: (1) detection of sarcasm in English Tweets, (2) detection of sarcasm in Arabic Tweets, (3) determining the type of sarcastic speech subcategory for English Tweets, (4) determining which of two semantically equivalent English Tweets is sarcastic, and (5) determining which of two semantically equivalent Arabic Tweets is sarcastic. All tasks were framed as classification problems, and our contributions are threefold: (a) we developed an English binary classifier system with RoBERTa, …

Enhancing Building Maintainability Through Early Supplier Involvement In The Design Process, Ayman Ahmed Ezzat Othman, Ahmed Ramadan Kamel

Architectural Engineering

The post-construction phase represents a critical milestone in the project lifecycle. This is because design errors and omissions as well as construction defects are examined during this phase. The traditional procurement approaches that are commonly adopted in construction projects separate design from construction, which inhibits contractors, suppliers and other parties from providing the design team with constructive comments and feedback to improve the project design. Consequently, lack of considering maintainability aspects during the design process results in increasing maintenance and operation costs as well as reducing building performance. This research aims to investigate the role of early supplier involvement (ESI) …

The Role Of Native Cysteine Residues In The Oligomerization Of Kcnq1 Channels, Alison Bates, Rebecca B Stowe, Elizabeth M Travis, Lauryn E Cook, Carole Dabney-Smith, Gary A Lorigan

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

KCNQ1, the major component of the slow-delayed rectifier potassium channel, is responsible for repolarization of cardiac action potential. Mutations in this channel can lead to a variety of diseases, most notably long QT syndrome. It is currently unknown how many of these mutations change channel function and structure on a molecular level. Since tetramerization is key to proper function and structure of the channel, it is likely that mutations modify the stability of KCNQ1 oligomers. Presently, the C-terminal domain of KCNQ1 has been noted as the driving force for oligomer formation. However, truncated versions of this protein lacking the C-terminal …

A Pebbling Game On Powers Of Paths, Garth Isaak, Matthew Prudente, Joseph M. Marcinik Iii

Communications on Number Theory and Combinatorial Theory

Two Player Graph Pebbling is an extension of graph pebbling. Players Mover and Defender use pebbling moves, the act of removing two pebbles from one vertex and placing one pebble on an adjacent vertex, to win. If a specified vertex has a pebble on it, then Mover wins. If a specified vertex is pebble-free and there are no more valid pebbling moves, then Defender wins. The Two-Player Pebbling Number of a graph G, η(G), is the minimum m such that for every arrangement of m pebbles and for any specified vertex, Mover can win. We specify the …

Instances Of The Spirit (Glossary), Kamari A. Smalls

Masters Theses

This thesis offers a performative methodology to engaging with the worlds and ideas that these words have generated in the form of a glossary. The list of words include: Ancestor, Anointing, Attune, Breath, Conjure, Conversion, Dance, Erotic, Ephemera, Ethervism, God, Girlhood, Hallelujah, Imagination, Improvisation, Jazz, Knowledge, Love, Liturgical, Magic, Memory, Performance, Prayer, Remnant, Repetition, Ritual, Root, Sacred/Secular, Silence/Stillness, Sound, Spell, Spirit, Testimony, Water, and Witness. Personal reflections, contemplations and expansions from other writing, and passages that come out of Black feminist thought, Black girlhood studies, and Black performance theory exist here simultaneously. This glossary demonstrates the theory, theology and lineages …

Finding The Balance, Danyang Song

Masters Theses

Translating different invisible emotions, feelings and symbiotic relationships. Explore the Traditional Chinese Humanistic Philosophy of 'Tian Ren He Yi'.

The interwoven relationship between human, nature and machine is complicated yet beautiful. I explores how visceral emotion, feeling, language and communication all play an important part of how our bodies react, to visualize this invisible feeling. I attempts to visualize the mystery of the human body and society through various ceramic and glass techniques, such as hand-building, blowing and ceramic 3D printing. Using different methods of combining and stressing the material, capturing that resistance and embracing the outcome through a series …

Cyberflesh: The Me I'Ve Made For You, Jordan Metz

Masters Theses

This thesis deals with the impact of digital life on individuals by examining how real things become virtual bodies of information. Throughout this text, I weave key theoretical and literary references between my own thoughts and experiences which led to the work that appears in this book. I find it useful to attend to the spaces in between entities, theories, and technolo- gies. In these undefined spaces lies the spiritual dimension of media, the everyday magic that makes digital life possible. These ‘in-betweens’ are the site of transcendence granted by technology. In my practice, I’ve learned that things have a …

Destined Failure, Chengjun Pan

Masters Theses

I attempt to examine the complex structure of human communication, explaining why it is bound to fail. By reproducing experienceable phenomena, I demonstrate how they can expose communication structure and reveal the limitations of our perception and symbolization.I divide the process of communication into six stages: input, detection, symbolization, dictionary, interpretation, and output. In this thesis, I examine the flaws and challenges that arise in the first five stages. I argue that reception acts as a filter and that understanding relies on a symbolic system that is full of redundancies. Therefore, every interpretation is destined to be a deviation.

Describe The City You Live In, Jingfei Hu

Masters Theses

I dive into the fields: frequency (sound), wavelengths (light), shapes (conversation): they build connections. What is action without reflection? Now I’m a city drifter. Through art making and dialogue I try to drop the anchor into the futuristic turbulent ocean (of society, speed, and the status quo ). Did I drop it? Not sure. I grew up in the most fast- paced city in China, Shenzhen. I feel pressured there. Do I feel that pressure here? of a precarious, unpredictable future? These questions push me out of the turbulent ocean to grab the present.

There are three stages of time: …

To Melt, Huanzhe Hu

Masters Theses

This thesis focuses on the need for a reevaluation of the relationship between humans and nature in the face of the current ecological crisis. The author argues that the dominant anthropocentric orientation, which sees nature as a resource to be exploited for human benefit, has led to over extraction and resource abuse, disrupting the balance of ecosystems. Instead, the author suggests adopting an ethical framework based on mutual understanding and appreciation, breaking the "hunter's gaze" and fostering empathy for non-human life forms. This thesis also explores the potential for new forms of communication and engagement with nature, such as through …

Distance: A Collection Of Studies Of Human-Computer Interaction To Explore Human Emotions And Relationships, Jinha Kang

Masters Theses

In today's society, technology has become an indispensable part of our lives, permeating our daily routines to the point where it feels as essential as the air we breathe. The COVID-19 pandemic further highlighted the profound impact of technology, revealing its dual nature. While video conferencing bridged distances and connected people, the excessive use of social media drove wedges between them. As a multimedia artist, this thesis focuses on harnessing the positive potential of technology. Specifically, the objective is to employ technology as a medium to create art that fosters meaningful connections among individuals and conveys intricate emotions and complex …

Design: A Path To Agency, Design Thinking: An Educational Imperative, Seva Simone

Masters Theses

Design(ing) and Design Thinking are valuable frameworks that should be used to drive agency: This thesis explores what design and design thinking are and builds a case for incorporating design into art education.

Design isn’t a mainstream subject of study in public school curricula. Design offers a unique body of knowledge that is highly relevant to the inner-workings of our world: knowledge imperative to teach if we want to succeed in solving wicked problems like global warming and mitigating global injustices. Studying design allows students to connect academic learning to the world outside the ivy, bridging the gap between the …

Explorations And Reflections: Gendered Experiences In Teaching And Learning, Francesca Matarese

Masters Theses

This thesis explores the history of women's access to education and the issues of gender disparity in education. I focus on single-gendered schools as I write from personal experience to describe the benefits for individuals in single-gender educational systems. I cite conflicting research on how men and women learn regarding biological, cognitive, and developmental differences. I illuminate some of the benefits of single-gendered education through research, experience, and personal communications. I write about the controversies and disparities regarding education and single-gender schools. I document research on the issues women face in education and the politics of women’s bodies and minds …

New Commandments, Jacob Sussman

Masters Theses

I reach into the earth, pull out mud-encrusted objects, and recombine them to define new meanings. With every object transposed, the past breaks down; new potentials form. “New Commandments” recombines historical symbolism through an intuitive building, destroying, and merging to reimagine or re-establish meaning.

The work critiques rites of passage, masculinity, and stereotypes by deconstructing how histories, ideologies, and preconceptions form.

As a queer person raised in-between Judaism and Christianity, social preconceptions and religious expectations festered my formation. Our choice is taken away at this moment of conception. To take back autonomy, I reimagine historical, and religious symbolism and transmute …

The Enduring Influence Of Emerson's Ideas On American Management Literature From The Lens Of Dale Carnegie’S How To Win Friends And Influence People, Taylor M. Dalton

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis considers how the essays of Ralph Waldo Emerson may be seen as an important precursor to Dale Carnegie’s How to Win Friends and Influence People. Through a side-by-side analysis of four key topics—creativity, intention, action, and the idea of a non-hierarchal society—it becomes clear that the independent and creative mindset envisioned by Emerson in essays like “Self-Reliance” and “The American Scholar” finds a full and practical expression in the pages of Carnegie’s famous book. A close reading of these texts will reveal how Carnegie’s application of the philosophical ideas put forth by Emerson served as the foundation …

Ritual As Design Gesture: Reimagining The Spring Festival In Downtown Providence, Wenjie Wang

Masters Theses

Rooted in the belief that architecture should transcend mere functionality and embrace the realms of emotional profundity, experiential richness, spiritual resonance, and poetic expression, this thesis aims to evoke potent emotional and spiritual connections within the human psyche. My thesis, taking advantage of ritual practice, employs an architectural perspective to examine the temporal and spatial aspects, utilizing ritual practice as a design gesture to generate a platform for social relationships outside the existing community.

Focusing on the Chinese diaspora communities in Providence, my thesis reimages the long-lost Chinatown of Providence and design both ephemeral and enduring architecture with scenes of …

Soft City: Reclaiming Urban Public Spaces For Play, Jennifer Pham

Masters Theses

This thesis explores the relationship between children’s play and urban public spaces. What kinds of play are prioritized, and consequently, what ways of learning are celebrated above others? How are public spaces serving or not serving to nurture children’s development and joy?

The thesis design project is a strategic plan for spatial activism. Using a “guerilla architecture” approach, I am developing a series of workshops with the local community that culminate in collectively designed urban installations. This participatory design process enables people to perceive public spaces in new ways, and it invites community members and children to become active parts …

Metaphors In Materials And Imagery For Self Reclamation And Empowerment, Janice Lardey

Masters Theses

As an experimental multidisciplinary artist, my creative process draws inspiration from daily experiences and encounters with the mundane. I am particularly interested in West African textile cultural practices, specifically the use of symbols and basic geometric forms to communicate through materials (specifically fabrics) and the role these images and forms play in African culture. In my work, I am developing my own distinct vocabulary of symbols and patterns, inspired by these practices.

My artistic practice explores a wide range of themes related to women, sustainability, loss, everydayness, wear and tear, degeneration, the transitory nature of life, and material effects, often …

Interstice, Shravan Rao

Masters Theses

When I was about three years old, I distinctly remember being too small to see what was on top of the table. A couple of years later, when I could see those objects, I thought the world around me had grown smaller. In a way, it did, as I experienced, lived, captured, remembered, and shared the space repeatedly. This sense of the world shrinking was exaggerated during the Covid-19 pandemic, allowing new behaviours and modes of interaction to emerge. Continually shaping our modern lives, virtual technologies redefine how we access and share information and stories or even explore new places. …

Illusion Of Consumption, Architectural Rebellion: Unraveling The Maze Of Consumption, Xinjie Xiang

Masters Theses

Consumerism was born in the industrial age, and has been criticized since that time, but it still exists and flourishes in new forms with the information age. Consumption affects values and life, spurring economic growth and causing ecological crises. Therefore, a critical discussion of consumerism must continue.

This thesis proposes a space within an existing mall that raises people's awareness to be vigilant against the control of consumerism by exposing how marketing packages goods and manipulates people's psychology to guide consumption. An ideal mall to host this program is the Changsha International Finance Square, a large mixed-use building in the …

Finding Psychological Healing In College Settings, Dici Zou

Masters Theses

This thesis addresses the mental health crisis among college students by proposing an alternative, demonstrated through an adaptive reuse of the psychological counseling center at the Rhode Island School of Design. The existing design of many campus mental health spaces falls short in addressing the psychological needs of students. The aim of this thesis is to propose a solution by redesigning an existing space that caters to the requirements of students' mental health, through the manipulation of lighting, color, layout, acoustics, and materials to address individual sensory issues. Based on the limitations of the existing conditions of the RISD mental …

Imaginatorium For Children With Visual Impairment, Xueyun Tang

Masters Theses

Although accessible city planning and architecture codes, such as the ADA standards, have significantly improved the lives of people with disabilities by providing physical access to infrastructure, individuals with visual impairments, particularly blind children, still face significant obstacles to fully engage in social activities. Blind children are a vulnerable group that encounters various challenges in developing their cognitive and motor skills, as well as accessing education and social opportunities. In order to gain a deeper understanding of the factors in spatial design that impact blind people’s spatial perception, this thesis conducted a review of existing architectural approaches and proposes a …

Watering The Soul: Reintroduction Of Water To The Urban Space, Danfei Zhang

Masters Theses

Water and humans have a primordial connection which is more than fundamental survival requirement. Throughout human history, water has been a spiritual archetype by which people perceive and imagine the world. As a reflection of this, water is broadly featured in human material culture and plays a primary role in all religions and cultures.

Well-composed water features are capable for human’s spiritual and physical happiness and wellness. However, water that can benefit human well-being is absent from the vulnerable communities and populations that need it most, which is further exacerbated by the global water crisis.

This thesis proposes the reintroduction …

Moving In, Moving Up, Moving On : The Adaptation And Preservation Of Chinese Diasporas Through Food, Jieqi Yao

Masters Theses

Moving In, Moving Up, Moving On explores the processes of Chinese culture and space in America of adaptation, assimilation, and preservation that underlie food changes. As Chinatowns across the US have evolved and residents have relocated, former centers of Chinese cultural identity have progressively transformed into restaurant districts with increasingly diverse populations and space gentrification.

The thesis argues that food is central to preserving cultural memory and reducing the generation divide. In the context of the Chinese diaspora transformation, culture has changed food in different spaces, and it gives people more choices to acquire and exchange information and values through …

Starting From Ecotone Reconnecting Fragmented Mission Hill, Xinyi Cai

Masters Theses

This thesis aims to address the spatial fragmentation of Mission Hill. As an old, crowded and chaotic neighborhood in Boston, Mission Hill is a microcosm of Boston's history. Four hundred years ago, Mission Hill was an ecological ecotone which consisted of a series of transitional landscapes, located on the border of a peninsula surrounded by salt marshes. Today, the history of ecotone has been hidden. Landfill, segregation, gentrification, and climate change have caused fragmented spaces, weak connections, and poor accessibility. Meanwhile, the fragmentation of public open areas has also disrupted people's interaction with one another, and the spatial spirit of …