Digital Commons Network^™

Functional Characterization Of Copper Tolerance In The Atypical Microsymbiont Pseudofrankia Inefficax, Megan Paige Garcia

Doctoral Dissertations

Bacterial species in the family Frankiaceae are soil-dwelling microsymbionts that form a mutualistic symbiosis, termed the actinorhizal symbiosis, with over 220 species of woody dicots. In this relationship, frankia fix atmospheric nitrogen to ammonia, a form usable by plants, while the bacteria benefit from the carbon sources exuded by their actinorhizal hosts. Since nitrogen is typically a limiting nutrient for growth in degraded and contaminated soils, actinorhizal plants establish at these sites as pioneer plant species, initiating a path for phytoremediation. Likely due to their association with plant hosts in contaminated soils, most frankia strains have evolved above average tolerances …

Deformation-Induced Bonding Of Glassy Polymeric Films And The Diluent Effect, Ajay Vallabh

Doctoral Dissertations

Bonding between two polymer films can be achieved through various heat- or chemical-based methods. Recently, our group has discovered the novel phenomenon of deformation-induced bonding (DIB) for solid-state glassy polymers in time on the scale of a fraction of a second at ambient temperatures substantially below the bulk glass transition temperatures (T_g). DIB is achieved by bulk plastic compression, which triggers the molecular mobility of polymer chains to cause interpenetration across the interface even in a glassy regime.

First, we performed a series of experiments to evaluate solid-state, deformation-induced bonding in organic polymer blends composed of films of hydroxypropyl methylcellulose …

The Postnational Aspirations Of European Law, Paul Linden-Retek

Buffalo Law Review

This Essay begins from a particular quarrel over the interpretation of the German Federal Constitutional Court’s PSPP judgment of May 2020 to open onto questions of how to conceive political freedom beyond the nation-state, about the structure of postnational constitutionalism and its purposes, and, finally, about the role of courts within that structure and in light of those aspirations. In arguments defending the Court, an influential strand of constitutional theory, in this Essay represented by the intervention of Ulrich Haltern, continues to channel assumptions that constrain thinking about Europe as a postnational legal order. Assuming that political freedom is essentially …

Leadership Ways Of The Three Fires Anishinaabek, Grace Boda

Dissertations

Leadership has often been viewed through a narrow lens that primarily reflects Western perspectives, while Indigenous knowledge has been overlooked, marginalized, or excluded, perpetuating colonial systems. This study aims to restore Indigenous knowledge within the Three Fires Anishinaabek community and to contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of leadership. Employing an Indigenous research methodology, the study centers relational and wholistic ways of knowing. This approach adheres to Indigenous ethics of relational accountability and utilizes a collaborative strategy for knowledge gathering (data collection) through conversational interviews.

As knowledge contributors (participants), members of the Three Fires Anishinaabek community engaged in discussions that …

From Pages To Pixels: Library Workers’ Perceptions Of Power In The Digital Era, Sean Gaffney

Dissertations

This work explores how library workers experience power during the era of digital transformation. As libraries transition from traditional knowledge repositories to dynamic, technology-driven information centers, power structures within these institutions are undergoing significant change. Despite the extensive implementation of digital transformation initiatives, there is a critical gap in understanding how digitalization is impacting employees’ experiences of power within the library context.

Drawing on French and Raven’s Bases of Social Power model, this study investigates how digital tools, platforms, and processes influence how power is perceived among library workers and its distribution and sources. A qualitative survey study was conducted …

I Belong Here: How Culturally Responsive Learning Builds Community And Acceptance In The Dance Classroom Of A Public School System, Britteny Dorothy Hyslip

Master's Theses

The purpose of this study was to gauge the impact of culturally responsive educational practices on a public school dance class through evaluations of students taking part in the class. This study aimed to see how a dance course written with culturally responsive learning practices positively impacts public school students from a behavioral and social-emotional aspect. Two essential questions were used in this thesis study.

Q1 Why is the diversity of dance important in a diverse school district?

Q2 How can the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education scale for culturally responsive learning be reframed for performing arts education …

Disney's Postfeminist Follies: Disney’S Postfeminist Portrayal Of Women In The Age Of Fourth Wave Of Feminism, Morgan Crafton

Honors Theses

In 2022, Disney CEO Bob Chepak spoke out against the "Don't Say Gay" bill signed by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. DeSantis’ supporters derisively labeled Disney as “woke." However, the company does not warrant the label. Though Fourth Wave feminism has broadened Disney’s idea of a woman, the entertainment company largely operates with a postfeminist lens that prevents its heroines from being feminist representations of women. Audiences see this in "Frozen," (2013), "Moana" (2016), "Encanto" (2021), and "Turning Red" (2022). Disney’s postfeminist rhetoric allows it to portray supposedly progressive women without challenging societal notions of misogyny. Thus, Disney’s criticisms for “wokeness” …

From Polski Crash To Meine Polnische Jungfrau: Orientalizing Poland In The German Cinema Of The 1990s, Jakub Kazecki

All Faculty Scholarship

This article examines how German anxieties about reunification and shifting borders are represented through Orientalist portrayals of Polish women in two post-reunification films, Polish Crash, dir. Kaspar Heidelbach (1993), and My Polish Maiden, dir. Douglas Wolfsperger (2001). Building upon Edward Said’s theory of Orientalism and the idea that the concept of East-Central Europe has been invented as a counterimage of the “West” (Larry Wolff), the analysis reveals how depictions of Polish women as pas-sive, vulnerable, and in need of German male assistance serve to reassert German masculinity in the face of perceived social and economic threats from the “East.” The …

Evaluating Passive And Assertive Secularism: A Comparative Study Of France And Sweden, Odessa Clear

International and Global Studies Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis seeks to identify the reasoning behind different outcomes of secularism in both France and Sweden in the context of Ahmet Kuru's passive and assertive secularism model. While explaining the historical causes and evolution of secularist thought, it aims to effectively evaluate contrasting approaches to how secularism is applied. To address the current gap in studies intending to assess secularism, this argument identifies how various factors are impacted by secularist-state policies. Through this analysis, it reveals the determinants in secularist approaches and their consequences on religious tensions or tolerance. This assessment of similar European countries experiencing both immigration and …

Uniting Science And Society: The Role Of Leadership Studies, Scientific, And Political Leaders In Combating Science Polarization, Kathryn E. Reda

Interdisciplinary Journal of Leadership Studies

This commentary discusses the recent political polarization of scientific research and how this polarization threatens the neutrality of science in American society. It contends further that leadership studies, along with scientific studies, have become a contentious battleground themselves, particularly on topics like climate change, energy policy, and the COVID-19 pandemic. This is exacerbated by mass media misinformation and declining public trust. Science polarization poses a significant challenge for leadership as it erodes informed decision making, making it crucial for leaders to bridge rather than deepen ideological divides. Leadership studies as a discipline has a responsibility to explore the causes of …

Effect Of An Anti-Hiv Polymer Based Nanoformulation On Immune Mediating Cells Within The Gut Associated Lymphoid Tissue And Its Behavioural Impacts, Blessed Ofori

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis investigates the therapeutic potential of nanoformulated antiretroviral therapy (NF cART) and its implications for HIV-associated chronic inflammation and neurobehavioral outcomes. In the first study, NF cART demonstrated enhanced efficacy in modulating inflammasome activation and reducing viral reservoirs in gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT) and the small intestine of HIV-infected humanized mice. Key markers of inflammation (NLRP3, Caspase-1, and IL-1β) and viral replication (LTR and p24 levels) were significantly suppressed with NF cART compared to conventional therapy, though residual LTR expression persisted in the small intestine. In the second study, nanoformulated Emtricitabine uniquely enhanced locomotor activity and reduced anxiety-like behaviors …

The Mythical Nexus: Illuminating The Rich Tapestry Of Global Folklore, Trishala Parmar

Theses

There is a lack of accessibility and exposure to global folklore for a wider audience. Despite the richness and diversity of folktales worldwide, many people may not have access to them due to limited resources, language barriers, cultural isolation, and a lack of exposure. I saw a need to preserve and celebrate cultural heritage through stories and make it fun. I created an interactive website called The Mythical Nexus which allows an audience to interact with different stories and cultures through a series of rotating cubes. This website connects stories and folklore from around the globe through the power of …

Digital Storytelling Strategies For Viewer Engagement: A Rhetorical Analysis Of Youtube Videos By Nonprofit Healthcare Organizations, Maame Aba Afful

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As reliance on digital media and social media platforms such as YouTube increases, health organizations infuse rhetorical strategies to create memorable and impactful health-related videos to raise awareness and attract support. Nonprofit healthcare organizations use digital storytelling to communicate their impact. In this study, I conduct a rhetorical analysis of five digital storytelling videos shared on the YouTube pages of nonprofit healthcare organizations to: identify how the videos leverage rhetorical appeals, point-of-view (POV), and metadata; and discuss how such strategies might influence viewer engagement or brand objectives. My findings suggest that nonprofit healthcare organizations integrate positive and negative emotional appeals …

Conceptualizing Centrality In Micro-Level Internationalization Through A Decolonial Approach, Omolabake Fakunle

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

Micro-level internationalization offers possibilities to explore different human experiences in international higher education. This is especially crucial given well-reported issues of racism, micro-aggression, and underrepresentation of racially minoritized international academic staff, whose voices remain mostly invisible in internationalization discourses. Previous research connects these issues to the continuing legacy of colonial logic, that privileges hegemonic Westerncentric knowledge systems. In this paper, centrality is proposed as a conceptual framework that offers a direct response to the question of epistemicide which Santos (2014) explains as the exclusion of the knowledges of racially marginalized persons [in or with origins] from the Global South. It …

Insights From Glocal Educators: Unveiling The Transformative Journeys Of Educational Developers, A Eltayb, J Valcke

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

No abstract provided.

Academic Voices: Continuing Professional Development For Teaching In Internationalized Classrooms, Lucie Weissova, Jeanine Gregersen-Hermans, Darko Pantelic

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

No abstract provided.

The Impact Of Exchange Rate On The Gross Domestic Product (Gdp) In Iraq For The Period (2004-2022), Wijjdan Ogge Mohi, Sameer Siham Dawood

Journal of Economics and Administrative Sciences

Purpose: Measuring the connection between the effect of the (EX) and GDP in Iraq. Theoretical Framework: The research addressed the impact of the exchange rate on Iraq's gross domestic product. The research problem revolves around the lack of an exchange rate policy that stimulates investment and production as a result of the economic challenges that Iraq is suffering from, especially since the exchange rate is linked to the trends of the general budget and imports, which led to the weakness of the impact of this monetary instrument on the economy. Therefore, the research raises the problem of whether the exchange …

Using Ai Tools To Unmask Sarcasm, Sidra Tehniyath Lnu

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Sarcasm can be identified in newspaper headlines in digital communication, as it is contextual and has low inter- and intra-observer reliability. This research aims to improve sarcastic comment identification using a natural language processing approach, especially the BI-LSTM. The primary concern is to use fine-tuning methods to enhance the ways that strengthen the sarcasm identification rate, which regards the factors that complicate an automatic identification process. The study explores the impact of techniques such as early stopping, optimal loss function selection, and hyperparameter tuning to enhance the model's performance. The research questions are: Q1) How can fine-tuning techniques for BI-LSTM …

Roger Williams University 2024 President's Report: A Message From President Miaoulis, Roger Williams University

Life of the Law School (1993- )

No abstract provided.

Insider-Outsider Research, Qualitative Discovery, And The Enhancement Of Social Justice, Randa Abbas, Deborah Court

The Qualitative Report

We have for over twenty years researched the Israeli Druze community in an insider- outsider research partnership, coming to deep understanding of the family and communal factors that limit the access of Druze and Muslim women to higher education and academic and professional advancement. These research insights have enabled us, in the academic institution where we work, to enact practices that increase academic and professional access for these women. While we did not plan this as a research focus or goal, we have lately come, in inductive fashion, to the realization that this is social justice work. According to John …

Filtered Reality: Artificial Intelligence In Social Media & The Mental Health Of Adolescents, Maria Savva

Open Educational Resources

This instructional module was developed for teacher candidates preparing to teach in New York secondary schools, which include middle (6-8) and high schools (9-12). A three-pronged approach has been used to ensure teacher candidates develop a comprehensive and contemporary understanding of Artificial Intelligence (AI) as it relates both to their respective disciplines and its impact on the adolescents they will be teaching. Using a three-pronged approach, teacher candidates will: consider the rapidly changing landscape of their own discipline and how it has been impacted by developments in AI; examine the effects of AI, including through social media platforms, on the …

Epistemic Spaces And Fields: A New Framework For Social Epistemology Applied To The Internet, Zizhe Cheng

Honors Theses

This thesis introduces "Epistemic Spaces and Fields," a novel framework for social epistemology inspired by the analogies of space and fields in physics to better elucidate how epistemic environments shape epistemic practices. Part A establishes the theoretical underpinnings of epistemic spaces and fields, demonstrating how social, cultural , and power dynamics distort individuals' capacities to obtain and communicate knowledge. Part B applies this framework to the digital realm, examining how the Internet and social media reshape our epistemic contexts and introduce new challenges to critical thinking.

Analize Exchange Rate Changes Effect On Poverty In Iraq For The Period (2004-2022), Ashraq Taleb, Azhar Hasan Hasan Ali

Journal of Economics and Administrative Sciences

Purpose: Analysis of the Impact of Exchange Rate Changes on the Poverty Index in Iraq and a Study of the Resulting Effects for the period (2004-2022). Theoretical framework: The research studied the relationship between the change in the (EX) and its role in reducing the phenomenon of poverty in Iraq for the period (2004-2022). The exchange rate is considered one of the most important tools of monetary policy in the Iraqi economy due to its sensitivity to any change taken by the monetary authority and its direct and indirect effects on all economic variables, including its impact on the poverty …

Korean Epistemology And Research: Centering Local Epistemologies In Qualitative Inquiry, Seungho Moon

Education: School of Education Faculty Publications and Other Works

This study examines how philosophical questions and discussions surrounding Korean epistemology can be reconstructed and created through qualitative research. Drawing upon Korea’s unique perspectives on human relationships and worldviews, it explores diverse discourses on knowledge and truth. Through a case-study approach, the author investigates the potential for qualitative researchers of varying cultural and historical heritage to expand their horizons and directions of qualitative inquiry. Illuminating the ontological dynamics of being and non-being within the multifaceted and in-depth discourses of Korean epistemology, it offers an example of what new versions of qualitative research are possible based on methodologies such as Suda, …

Exploring Students' Computer-Supported Collaborative Argumentation With Socio-Scientific Issues, Wenli Chen, Yiting Han, Jesmine Tan, Aileen Siew Cheng Chai, Qianru Lyu, Lyna

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Background: This study examined the effect of computer-supported collaborative argumentation (CSCA) on secondary school students' understanding of socio-scientific issues (SSI). Engaging students in collaborative argumentation is known to help with deepening their understanding of SSI. Methods: In this study, a mixed-method design is used to investigate 84 students' collaborative argumentation processes and outcomes. The statistical analysis, epistemic network analysis and qualitative uptake analysis results showed that CSCA was effective in supporting secondary school students' evidence-based argumentation skills on SSI. Findings and Conclusion: Several cases were presented to show how students engaged in CSCA to explore meaningful learning opportunities and how …

The Impact Of Single Parent Households On Middle School Students, Erik Puga

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

This research explores the influence of single-parent households on the academic achievement of middle school students in Salinas, CA, with a particular focus on East Salinas, an area marked by economic challenges. Grounded in my personal experience growing up in a single-parent household in Salinas and shaped by my journey through the Alisal district pipeline, this study seeks to uncover the specific barriers and strengths that middle school students from single-parent families encounter. By examining socioeconomic pressures, parental involvement, and emotional well-being, I aim to identify how family structure affects students’ educational trajectories within the community. This research strives to …

Eurocentrism In Curriculum And Its Detriment To Cultural Awareness, Kimberly Rose Sterzick

Masters Projects

Some school curricula may hinder students' development of cultural awareness. School is the vessel through which many students get their first glimpse of the world, and bias throughout that voyage can negatively alter students’ development of cultural awareness --- the very skill that schools hope to promote. A Eurocentric approach and overemphasis on Western civilizations and ideals dominates the cultural conversations through their prolific use in “world” courses. When educational discourses point to Western cultures as the epitome of culture in “world” courses, students fail to obtain a true cultural understanding and awareness of the world around them, and they …

Beauty In The Mundane, Madeline Caniglia

Theses

This project focuses on challenging what compositions are considered valuable as art. The primary focus is on the relationship between light and shadow and how it contributes to the revelation of finding beauty in the mundane. This project involves studying old masters like Caravaggio and Edward Hopper while employing their techniques and methods in my artworks. Through a series of oil paintings, I depicted everyday objects and scenes to demonstrate how classical techniques, paired with contemporary subjects, help bridge historical and artistic practices with modern art.

Jacqueline Marval: Référence Sans Révérence Art History Lecture And Activity Series, Michelle Erickson

Theses

The painting Les Odalisques (1902-03) anchors the investigation of French artist Jacqueline Marval’s presence and contribution to the modernist art narrative. The painting is composed of five women who share a face and features, set in a private female space. The canvas is complete with bold strokes of color, and their skin is painted in the unrealistic tones that Fauvists will embrace, yet naturally – these women are still fully and complexly human. From a distance, they are sculptural.

This project is intended as a Club de Lecture series for adult learners of French culture and language at the Alliance …

“Kematz'ib' Para Gritar” Innovative Technologies In Revitalizing The Mayan Languages: Empowering Youth Through Poetry - A Narrative Study, Héctor De Jesús Palala Martínez

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

This dissertation explores innovative approaches to preserving and revitalizing the linguistic and cultural heritage of Mayan-speaking youth of Guatemalan descent in rural Nebraska. It delves into the intersection of technology, artistic expression, and cultural practices, emphasizing the revitalization of Mayan languages in Abya Yala (the Americas), particularly emphasizing the Guatemalan and the Mayan diasporas in Nebraska.

The research investigates the roles of digital humanities, culture-based education, and poetic expressions in language preservation/revitalization efforts among Mayan youth and unaccompanied minors in transnational educational settings. Central to the study is an academic initiative for transnational Mayan high school students integrating poetry and …