Digital Commons Network^™

Efficacy And Social Validity Of A Modified Good Behavior Game, Milad Najafichaghabouri

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Teachers regularly face challenging behavior from students in their classrooms. Research shows that the good behavior game (GBG) is a strategy teachers can use in their classrooms to improve student behavior. However, in practice, very few teachers choose to use this strategy in their classrooms. One reason why teachers may not use this intervention regularly is that they find some parts of the intervention to be difficult to implement in the long-term. The purpose of this study was to modify the procedures of the GBG to reduce implementation effort for teachers and assess if the intervention continues to be effective. …

Evaluating The Effects Of 3d User Interactions And Virtual Displays On Human Cognition And Perception For Immersive Analytics, Dongyun Han

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

This research investigates how virtual reality (VR) can be utilized effectively for users to explore data. Traditional data analysis typically takes place on flat, two-dimensional computer screens. In contrast, immersive technologies like VR offer a three-dimensional environment where users can engage with data more naturally and intuitively. Such immersive experiences have the potential to improve comprehension, memory, and insight during data analysis tasks. Despite this potential, several challenges remain in making immersive analytics practical and effective. Key questions include which types of 3D interaction techniques are most helpful and how accurately people perceive visual information in immersive environments. To address …

A Provable Semi-Infinite Programming Approach For Solving Dynamic Nash Games, Tyler C. Gardner

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Many engineering problems must account for the non-cooperative decisions and actions of multiple players. These problems can be modeled within a game-theoretic framework. The approach herein is to model problems as Nash games, convert them to semi-infinite programs, and leverage provable semi-infinite algorithms to solve the original problem. A particular algorithm that leverages off-the-shelf solvers is used to solve four low-dimensional benchmark problems successfully. Two types of linear quadratic dynamic games are then investigated: ones where each player’s problem is convex and ones where at least one player’s problem is nonconvex. Within each type, variations based on information structure, communication …

Improving Seasonal Precipitation Forecasts In The Western United States Through Statistical Downscaling, Bradley Vernon

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Seasonal precipitation forecasts are essential tools for water management, especially in drought-prone areas like the Western United States. While global forecasting systems can predict precipitation months to years in advance, these forecasts are typically produced at a coarse spatial resolution due to high computational costs – especially when multiple forecast iterations, or ensemble members, are included. This coarse resolution limits their ability to capture localized weather features, such as those shaped by the complex terrain of the Intermountain West. Here, analog statistical downscaling is demonstrated as an effective approach to enhance the spatial resolution of operational seasonal forecasts provided by …

Empirical Evaluation Of Bayes Error Rate Bounds In Binary Classification, Riley May

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Classification tasks are fundamental in statistical machine learning. In classification tasks, a general goal is to build or select a model that can correctly classify data with as few errors as possible. However, for a particular dataset, the minimal number of errors achievable is seldom zero since overlap in the data makes errors unavoidable. As a result, it is often difficult for machine learning practitioners and data scientists to know whether classification errors can be reduced through further refinement. A potential solution to this lies in the Bayes error rate (BER). The BER is the lowest error rate achievable for …

An Investigation Into The Principle Of Symmetric Criticality, Guillermo Frausto

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

In physics, symmetries help us understand complex systems by revealing conserved quantities and simplifying equations. In the context of general relativity, where spacetime is curved and dynamic, these symmetries become especially important when trying to reduce or solve the equations that govern gravitational and matter fields.

This dissertation investigates a mathematical principle known as the Principle of Symmetric Criticality (PSC), which helps determine when symmetries can be used to simplify physical theories without losing essential information. While often assumed to be valid, PSC does not always hold, and understanding when it does is critical for the reliable use of symmetry …

Intra-Stand Movement Of Balsam Woolly Adelgid (Adelges Piceae) In The Intermountain West, Michael S. Wayman

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Balsam woolly adelgid (BWA, Adelges piceae (Ratz.)) is an invasive insect of true firs (Abies spp.). BWA has spread from initial introductions on the west coast of North America in the 1920s through the Intermountain West and has recently invaded Utah. White fir (A. concolor) and subalpine fir (A. lasiocarpa) are the two main species of concern in this region; however, subalpine fir has been found to be more susceptible to attack and subsequent damage. While long-range dispersal mechanisms and patterns are of interest for spread across regions and for predicting new infestations, very little …

Conceptions Of Climate Change Skepticism: A Phenomenographic Investigation On Perspectives From Climate Scientists And Climate Activists, Candace L. Penrod

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

This study addresses how climate change denial is understood by climate scientists and climate activists. This research also investigates what communication strategies addressing climate change denial are used by climate scientists and climate activists. Phenomenography was selected as a methodology to address the qualitative and quantitative aspects of this inquiry. Pre-recorded data from interviews with six climate scientists and six climate activists living in the Intermountain West were used as the data source. Interview transcripts were read, marked, and coded to identify how climate scientists and climate activists understood climate change denial. Five conceptions of climate change skepticism were identified …

Evaluating The Effects Of Two Key Temporal Intervals During Pavlovian Training On Conditioned Reinforcement, Gabrielle M. Sutton

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Reinforcers are anything that increases or maintains the frequency of a behavior that precedes their occurrence. Reinforcers can be separated into two types, primary and secondary. Primary reinforcers are biologically relevant stimuli like food, water, or drugs that can influence behavior without any prior training. Secondary reinforcers are those that impact behavior through their trained relationship with a primary reinforcer, like money and tokens. For this reason, they are also known as conditioned reinforcers. Conditioned reinforcers are used in therapies and training designed to increase desirable behaviors, but they are also involved in the development and maintenance of maladaptive behaviors …

Evaluating Maternal Polar Bear Denning Habitat Along The Arctic Coastal Plain And Assessing The Potential For Noise Disturbance In Polar Bear Dens, Ethan Ducharme

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Polar bears (Ursus Maritimus) in northern Alaska are increasingly choosing land instead of sea ice to build their maternity dens. As sea ice continues to decline due to climate change, this shift makes it more important than ever to identify and protect the areas where polar bears dig dens to give birth and raise their cubs. In the first part of my research, I used new satellite-based elevation data to map potential polar bear denning habitat across a large section of Alaska’s Arctic Coastal Plain. This technology allowed me to identify the types of sloped terrain where drifting …

Framing Conflict: How Social Media Influences Voter Opinions, May Smith

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Social media has changed the way we learn about global events. With just a few clicks, people can see powerful images of war and humanitarian crises from around the world. But how do these images, and the way they are presented, affect how people think about political candidates? This study looks at how different kinds of social media content influence voter opinions. Using a survey experiment designed to mimic real Instagram posts, participants were shown content related to the Israel-Palestine conflict. Some posts included only text. Others added data through charts and statistics. A third group saw emotional images of …

Remote Detection Of Pest Damage And Tree Health In Tart Cherry, Christina Klara Lilligren

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

With the increasing affordability of technology, using technological advancements to assess tree health might soon become a possibility in low input crops such as tart cherry. We evaluated the ability of drone-mounted multispectral cameras, ceptometry

(canopy density), and soil conductivity meters (soil texture) to predict pest occurrence and remotely detect tree health. Pest scouting data were compared to the different technological datasets to identify the possibility of use for pest detection. While drone-mounted multispectral cameras were able to identify chlorotic trees, powdery mildew was not reliably detectable under a management threshold with current multispectral camera technology. Trees with low canopy …

Assessing Long-Term Changes In Aspen Forest Cover In Northern Yellowstone National Park Before And After Carnivore Recovery, Nicholas J. Bergeron

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

The recovery of large carnivores (wolves, bears, cougars) in Yellowstone National Park and the subsequent decline of the area's elk herd have raised key questions about ecosystem restoration—particularly for species such as aspen, which are heavily browsed by elk. Following wolf reintroduction in the mid-1990s, scientists began tracking changes in browsing intensity and height of young aspen within sampling plots, assuming reduced browsing and taller stems were signs of population recovery. However, no studies have measured whether the total area covered by aspen stands actually increased, as would be expected with broader recovery. Moreover, the potential influence of climate change …

Operationalizing Camera-Based Hydrologic Monitoring With Ai And Edge Computing: Towards Real-Time Water Level And Discharge Measurements, Razin Bin Issa

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Monitoring river water levels and flows is critical for managing water supplies, protecting against floods, supporting ecosystems, and informing infrastructure planning. However, traditional methods rely on sensors installed directly in rivers, which can be expensive, difficult to maintain, and vulnerable to damage—particularly in remote or hazardous locations. In many regions, limited budgets and access challenges result in large gaps in river monitoring networks.

This research explores an innovative alternative: using fixed cameras and artificial intelligence (AI) to monitor rivers from a distance. The approach allows for non-contact observation of water levels and flows by analyzing images captured by cameras installed …

Precision Agriculture Applications In Tart Cherries: Yield Mapping Technologies And Remote Sensing For Water Stress Estimation, Anderson Luiz Dos Santos Safre

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Tart cherry is an important specialty crop in the United States, particularly in Utah where the area dedicated to tart cherry cultivation is larger than any other fruit grown in the state. However, growers face increasing challenges due to rising land prices, limited water availability, and extreme weather events. These factors make it essential to adopt new technologies that improve efficiency and sustainability. Precision agriculture, which uses data-driven tools to manage crops more effectively, can help address these challenges. However, most tart cherry orchards still rely on traditional practices due to a lack of specialized technologies for this crop. This …

Veils Of Oppression: An Exploration Of Paul Fitzsimmons Eve And His Impact On Enslaved Black Women's Lives, Zoe'swanna K. Mcgee

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

This thesis contributes to the ongoing study of gender, race, and medicine in the United States, focusing on Dr. Paul Fitzsimmons Eve and his practices. By examining the experiences of enslaved black women subjected to his surgical procedures and experiments, medical racism, harm, and exploitation become visible.

Ecology And Management Of Forest Grouse: Breeding Acoustic Monitoring, Spatial Behavior, And Harvest, Logan Clark

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Forest grouse are difficult to study and manage in the Intermountain West because they live in remote, rugged areas and do not gather at predictable display sites like other grouse species. From 2023 to 2025, I studied two species, dusky grouse (Dendragapus obscurus) and ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus), to test new survey tools, track their seasonal movements, and evaluate hunting impacts.

First, I tested whether small audio recording devices placed in the forest could minimize labor needed for spring breeding surveys. To do this, I conducted traditional surveys with human observers at the same time and …

Morphological Correlates Of Limaxivory In Contia (Serpentes: Dipsadinae) Compared To Related Taxa Carphophis And Diadophis, Lauren A. Houstoun

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Differences in the skull and musculature of snakes can often be linked to their diet. Snakes that eat snails and slugs have evolved independently at least four times. Several skull features of the skull have already been reported in snakes that eat snails, specifically those in the genus Pareas and some Dipsadini. Among those features are a shorter, more compressed snout and, in some species, asymmetry of the lower jaw. However, little attention has been paid to snakes that specialize only on slugs (limaxivores). Unlike the snail-eating members of the Pareidae and Dipsadini, limaxivores lack the morphological traits associated with …

The Effects Of Effective Stress And Overconsolidation Ratio On The Undrained Shear Strength Of Soil, Gunniga Suwannawong

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

This study investigates the effect of effective stress and overconsolidation ratio (OCR) on normalized undrained shear strength, which represents the soil deformation and soil strength from applied load. Theoretical frameworks indicate that undrained shear strength (S_u) is affected by soil parameters such as void ratio and is linked to the soil consolidation condition, stress path, and stress history. Furthermore, S_u is functionally related to the OCR. The purpose of these test are to test two hypotheses: 1) that the undrained shear strength conforms with normalized soil engineering properties, this is true if the following equation describes the …

What’S The Beef With Agriculture? Evaluating The Effectiveness Of An Agricultural Literacy Intervention On Students’ Attitudes And Knowledge Toward Sustainability And Animal Agriculture, Jenny E. Bennett

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Agricultural literacy is essential for helping individuals understand how food systems impact their daily lives and society. While most research has focused on students’ knowledge, this study addresses the underexplored role of attitudes—critical predictors of behavior—as outcomes of educational interventions. This research analyzed survey data collected before and after an agricultural literacy intervention delivered to high school students in school-based agricultural education (SBAE) programs. The curriculum focused on sustainability in animal agriculture.

Findings from paired samples t-tests showed statistically significant improvements in students' attitudes (from moderately neutral to more positive) and knowledge scores. Further analyses revealed that demographic factors such …

An Exploratory Study Of The Vertical Snarc Effect In Mayan Numerals: Effects Of Language Transparency And Reading Direction, Emmett A. Speed

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

The Mayan numerical system, used by the ancient Maya people, is very different from the Western Arabic numerical system. Instead of being based on 10, it's based on 20, and it uses dots and bars instead of the numbers 0 through 9. This study explored how people learn and understand Mayan numbers.

Participants took a 2.5-hour online course to learn Mayan numerals and number words. They were tested to see how quickly and accurately they could recognize and compare Mayan numerals. The results showed that people can learn the Mayan number system and use it automatically.

The study also looked …

A Focus On Student Education: Determining Student Attitudes Towards Transparent Autograding And Developing Artificially Intelligent Tools To Help Students Succeed, Andra Rice

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

This thesis is composed of two parts both relating to helping students succeed. First, the focus is on determining how we can help students feel more comfortable using an AI tool that can provide them immediate feedback. Second, machine learning algorithms are explored in relation to tracking student tasks to encourage healthy study habits.

The development of effective autograders is key for scaling assessment and feedback. While AI based autograding systems for open-ended response questions have been found to be beneficial for providing immediate feedback, autograders are not always liked, understood, or trusted by students. Our research tested the effect …

Unwritten Rules: Black Utahns’ Experience With De Facto Segregation In Utah, 1940-1965, Jasmine Mercedes Lowe

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

This thesis examines life in Utah during the Jim Crow era, utilizing oral history interviews with African Americans who lived in the state between 1940 and 1965. The interviewees selected for this project describe their personal experiences with housing, employment, public spaces, medical assistance, and education discrimination.

Temperature Effects On Fruit Doubling And Bloom Prediction In Tart Cherry, Josette M. Moon

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Tart cherry (Prunus cerasus) is a key horticultural crop in Utah. Extreme summer heat and cold weather in late spring are challenges to tart cherry production causing economic losses. These problematic weather conditions are influenced by the local landscape and are exacerbated by changing climate. This research explores (1) the impact of summer heat stress on fruit deformities, and (2) the accuracy of temperature-based predictions of spring bud development. High temperatures and water stress after harvest are known to cause a deformity known as twin or double fruits, resulting in unmarketable fruit. This disorder has been studied in …

Evaluation Of Novel Biomarkers As Predictive Measures Of Mastitis – Establishing A Relationship With Health Status, Lamb Performance, And Determination Of Prevalence Of Mastitis In Ewes Under Intensive Management, Courtney Berghoff

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Inflammation of the mammary gland, also known as mastitis, is a prevalent and financially impactful disease in sheep production. The objectives of this survey were to 1) evaluate current testing methods: somatic cell count (SCC), California Mastitis Test (CMT), and bacterial culture, as well as novel biomarkers: lamb performance, milk composition, and udder conformation, for their impact on ewes categorized as clinically healthy or unhealthy under intensive management systems at 15 days in milk (DIM) and 30 DIM, and 2) identify biological markers that are correlated with clinical and subclinical mastitis. Milk, blood, and fecal samples, a visual and physical …

Distal Impact Of Learning Trajectories On Motivational Factors In Second Language Acquisition Of Adult English Learners, Feng Zhang

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Learning a foreign language is a long-term process sustained by learners’ motivation, self-efficacy, and self-regulation. While prior research has established that past performance influences these motivational factors, overlooking the impact of past performance on current motivational constructs. This dissertation explores how past learning performance impact current motivational factors. Using a person-centered approach, three subgroups were identified as latent learning profiles within the sample population based on their performance features: the high-performing early peak profile, the stable profile, and the rising profile. Regression models were conducted to evaluate the extent to which latent learning profiles predicted motivational variables. The results showed …

The Socioecology Of Indigenous Archaeological Maize In The Uinta Basin, Utah, Sara Saouma

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

This thesis investigates the phenotypic variability of maize (Zea mays spp.) from archaeological sites located in the Uinta Basin, Utah. Maize was first introduced to the American Southwest around 5,000 years ago following its migration via trade routes from its native region of southern Mexico (Vint 2017). The adaptation of maize to the arid and temperate conditions of the American Southwest and Mexico triggered significant phenotypic change resulting from human and environmental selection pressures. This thesis focuses on the analysis of uncharred maize cobs from seven archaeological sites in the Uinta Basin. The analysis includes 70 corn cobs—most …

Understanding Hydroclimate In The Contiguous United States: Roles Of Temperature Vs Precipitation And Subtropical Pacific Warming, Grace Esenam Affram

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

This study investigates the physical drivers and mechanisms of hydroclimate variability across the Contiguous United States (U.S.), using a combination of observable data, reanalysis data, land modeling, and coupled climate model experiments. One of the major findings is that the historic 2021 drought event across the Western U.S. was primarily driven by a severe lack of precipitation rather than increased temperatures. The study further finds that anthropogenic forcing has substantially increased the risk of this extreme drought by approximately 26 times relative to a world without the influence.

Additionally, the study reveals that the Pacific Meridional Mode (PMM) characterized by …

Assessing Public Satisfaction And Transportation Choices During Winter Road Maintenance: A Case Study Of Utah, Shailendra Khanal

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Winter road maintenance is essential to keeping people safe and mobile during snowstorms. In Utah, where winter weather is a regular part of life, the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) plays a vital role in keeping roads clear and functional. While much attention is given to how roads are plowed and managed, there has been less focus on how the public experiences these efforts—and how the decisions to travel during storms are shaped by personal circumstances and perceptions.

This research sets out to understand two things: how satisfied people are with winter road maintenance, and what influences their transportation decisions …

Modeling For Functional Traits In Bluebunch Wheatgrass Using Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (Uav) High-Throughput Phenotyping, Brittany L. Johnson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Changing climates and shifts in community composition in the Intermountain West threaten sagebrush-steppe ecosystems, impacting both plants and animals. Restoring native grasses like bluebunch wheatgrass (Pseudoroegneria spicata; BBWG) can help ecosystems resist invasive species and recover from stress and disturbances. As a native cool-season grass, BBWG is widely used in rangeland restoration for the western U.S. Breeding programs for restoration plant materials, such as seeds for ecological projects, often require years or decades of field testing while facing staffing constraints. High- throughput phenotyping (HTP), which rapidly measures observable plant traits, offers a faster solution using drones to capture time-series …