Digital Commons Network^™

(Un)Orthodox Orient, Su Ergeneli

MA Projects

The term Orient was born from a Western-created body of knowledge, or rather discourse, with the authority of the West over the East. This paper, through historical and political analysis of the Orient, questions the reasoning and accuracy of the institutionalized Western knowledge of classical cultural archetypes of the East. Orientalism is a product of the West discovering the Orient and dominating and restructuring the Orient. Hence, it is represented by the dominating
frameworks. By taking the Orient out of the ideological discourse, this paper emphasizes Orient as an individual and evaluates the Near Eastern art market’s transformation as its …

Middle Savannah River: An A/R/Tographic Ecopedagogical Ethnography Experimenting With Rhizomatic Perspectives, Lisa Augustine-Chizmar

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

This research is an experiment in perspective. Using the four commonplaces (Schwab, 1978), I practiced letting the Savannah River teach me what there is to know about the water, the land, the people, and the other entities that depend on ki through artistic, ethnographic, and ecopedagogical lenses. The ethnographic findings describe the social actors that depend on ki and give a voice to the River. The a/r/tographic findings display the River on a canvas map through two hundred years using paint, clay, photography, video, abstract acrylics, and fabric. Together, these methods contribute to a unique ecopedagogical journey. This word cloud …

The Artist As Surveillant: The Use Of Surveillance Technology In Contemporary Art, Claire O'Neill

MA Theses

Artists have long been called observers, voyeurs, and watchers, and with a
/="/">particular interest in human behavior and society, they frequently use unknowing
/="/">passersby as their subjects for works. Curators and scholars explored how artists put citizens under surveillance with photography and videography, which dates back to the early 1900s, years before governments deployed surveillance systems. Since the 1980s, artists have explicitly explored surveillance technology and theory to alert viewers to the rise of surveillance. Today, this genre is called artveillance, a term coined by Andrea Mubi Brighenti in 2010 to categorize art that explicitly deals with surveillance. …

Effects Of Hiv-1 Tat And Opiates On Gene Regulation Of Oligodendrocyte Lineage Cells: Identification Of Myrf As A Novel Target, Kelly M. Flounlacker

Theses and Dissertations

HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders remain pervasive even with increased efficacy/use of antiretroviral therapies. Opioid use/abuse among HIV+ individuals is documented to exacerbate deficits. White matter (WM) alterations (myelin pallor, volume/structural) detected by diffusion tensor imaging, are common observations in HIV+ individuals. Using transgenic mice expressing HIV-1 Tat, we examined effects of 2-6 weeks of Tat/morphine exposure on WM using genomic/biochemical methods. RNA sequencing of striatal tissue after 2-weeks revealed robust changes in mRNAs associated with oligodendrocyte populations/myelin integrity, including Transferrin, Ndrg1, and myelin regulatory factor (Myrf/Mrf), an oligodendrocyte-specific transcription factor involved in differentiation/maturation. Immunoblots conducted after 6-weeks exposure in …

Understanding The Role Of A Regional Magnet School In Creative Identity Development Of Ethnically And Culturally Diverse Adolescents: A Case Study, Preeti Kamat

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation exploratory case study was to examine the creativity-supportive practices at an innovative regional magnet school shaping Ethnically & Culturally Diverse (ECD) students’ creative identity development as perceived by different stakeholders including ECD students enrolled in the first three cohorts, teachers, and school administrators of RichTech Regional Magnet High School [RRMHS] (pseudonym). This single qualitative case study employed a small component of a quantitative survey, the results of which guided in part the design of interview protocols and sampling procedures for recruiting qualitative participants. Using a pragmatic research lens, I obtained and analyzed the diverse qualitative …

Rooted In Between, Manavi Singh

Theses and Dissertations

Rooted in Between is a personal project that explores the complexities of belonging and the emotions that come with navigating between spaces that we call home. This written thesis is in support of the carefully curated video based and photographic work presented at an exhibition of the same title. The project's primary objective is to delve into the physical and emotional baggage that we carry with us as we move from one place to another. The project highlights the coping mechanisms adopted by the different generations in my family while struggling to find a place where we truly belong.

The Metanarratives Of The Fourth Industrial Revolution And The Collective Cognitive Dissonance Of Metamodernist Discursive Formation, John R. Lewis

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

My artworks explore the impacts of the technology of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, which began in the early 21^st Century, upon global society and the human psyche. My works are instantiated by multi-year research in the areas of social psychology, cognitive dissonance, computer evolution and artificial intelligence. My body of work portrays a cautionary sensibility regards new technologies such as robotics, quantum supercomputing, Artificial Intelligence, commercial space travel and nanotechnology. In addition, my artwork attempts to increase awareness of the phenomenon of cognitive dissonance.

The perceptions and cognitions of artistic viewers relate directly to the psychological phenomenon of cognitive …

The Torch: College Of Arts & Sciences Program Newsletter, Fall 2023, College Of Arts & Sciences Honors Program

College of Arts & Sciences Torch Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Bryant University Undergraduate Course Catalog, 2023-2024, Bryant University

Bryant University Undergraduate Course Catalog

No abstract provided.

Graduate Program Course Catalog 2023-2024, Bryant University

Bryant University Graduate School Course Catalog

No abstract provided.

Rising With Joy: Re-Defining The Meaning Of School Success, Eric Middleton

West Chester University Master’s Theses

Throughout this thesis, I will be discussing some of the pressure and stresses placed upon educators in the traditional school setting in America. Under an educational system that is about rigid routine and control, I examine the ill effects that come from a lack of creativity and autonomy. My overall goal throughout the thesis is to define what joy looks like for our students and staff. I conclude with a program proposal that links the concepts of free play, movement through wandering, and mental wellness to building a better community.

Linguistically Diverse Writers And The Shaping Of A Scholarly Ethos: Rhetorical Listening As A Strategy In Composition Pedagogy, Ashlynn T. Rader

West Chester University Master’s Theses

This thesis project advocates for a more inclusive approach to writing instruction, challenging traditional pedagogical practices that have historically excluded marginalized groups from fully participating in academic discourse. This project highlights the ways that Aristotelian interpretations of ethos continue to inform and shape contemporary writing pedagogy, despite their potential outdatedness in the context of the 21st-century composition classroom. By examining the Conference of College Composition and Communication's policy resolution entitled Students' Right to Their Own Language, this project recognizes the presence of linguistically diverse writers and their historical, ongoing struggle for academic legitimacy. Furthermore, this project proposes rhetorical listening …

The Narratives Of Sexulization: The Perspectives Of Young Entertainers Around Their Own Public Sexulizaiton, Alexis Williams

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Sexualization happens when agency is taken away from the individual being sexualized, where one is seen, depicted, and treated like a sexual object rather than a person. This thesis aims to explore celebrities' reactions to their own public sexualization. To do this, an inductive approach was used when analyzing first-person narratives (written and video) and interviews (podcast, magazine and newspaper) by those whose sexualization is a notable feature of their career in the United States. I used a nonprobability sampling technique in order to cast a wide net to find the sample (prior knowledge, Google searches, and Google alerts). This …

Review: Don Argott, Dir. Keep Sweet. 44 Blue Productions, 2021., Stephanie Griswold

Mormon Studies Review

The recent documentary Keep Sweet, directed by Don Argott and produced by Glenn Meehan (not to be confused with the 2022 Netflix documentary Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey), recounts the producer’s experiences meeting members of the historically Fundamentalist Mormon community in Southern Utah known as Short Creek. The film is advertised as “rare access to current FLDS members” from “a producer embedded for over a decade.” The film follows the producer, Meehan, as he meets ex-members and followers of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (FLDS) and depicts their experiences with the changes in their …

Should Using An Ai Text Generator To Produce Academic Writing Be Plagiarism?, Brian L. Frye, Chat Gpt

Fordham Intellectual Property, Media and Entertainment Law Journal

Author's Foreword: I “wrote” this article while taking a bath with a bottle of champagne, by submitting the questions in bold to ChatGPT and copying its responses. I did not bother providing citations for ChatGPT’s claims, because they would obviously be superfluous.

Editor-in-Chief's Foreword: In 2023, the question is unavoidable: when it comes to scholarship, and in our case, legal scholarship, what do we do about artificial intelligence (AI) like ChatGPT? Do we need to do anything? In the Comment that follows, author Brian L. Frye and ChatGPT tried to provide an answer to these questions. Actually, ChatGPT did most …

Revenge Concept As Manifested In Drawings And Narratives Of Ultra-Orthodox Vs. Secular Israeli Jews, Rachel Lev-Wiesel, Iris Manor Binyamini, Michal Divon Schreiber, Gideon Biran, Zohar Estrin, Gal Goldstein, Nir Yosef Shmerts, Shahar Nov, Tali Beja, Maya Gallor, Odeya Landesman Sofer, Lital Miran, Bussakorn Binson, Nisara Jaroenkajornkij

Journal of Urban Culture Research

The current study investigates the revenge concept of ultra-orthodox and secular Israeli Jews, manifesting in drawings and narratives. The convenient sample consisted of thirty-three participants aged 23-61 (12 ultra-orthodox and 21 seculars). This mix-methodology study included the qualitative part, which are two sets of drawings and narratives – “draw an unjust event you experienced” and “draw what you would prefer to happen to the person who unjustly treated you;” and the quantitative part included a self-report questionnaire of the following measures: demographics, history of traumatic events, and feelings of injustice. Comparison between the two groups revealed no differences in the …

Independence Or Interdependence? : The Thai Self-Construal As Reflected By Linguistic Evidence, Natthaporn Panpothong, Siriporn Phakdeephasook

Manusya, Journal of Humanities

Self-construal can influence the ways people in distinct cultures think, perceive and interact with others. To date, scholars still present different arguments on the prominent self-construal of Thais. The present study aims at examining Thai linguistic data including proverbs, sayings, cultural key terms and interactional data in response to the question of whether Thai culture places emphasis on independent or interdependent perspectives of the self. The findings reveal that Thai sayings, proverbs and cultural key terms reflect both independent and interdependent self-construals. Yet, those that stress interdependency outnumber independency. As for interactional practices in daily exchanges, the usage of pronominal …

Diversity, Equity, & Exclusion: Examining Jewish Identity & Antisemitism As Missing Pieces Of Dei And Ethnic Studies Education, Katie Meitchik

Pitzer Senior Theses

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) is a theory and practice that focuses on systemic structures, inequities, and social change by examining concepts such as race, gender, class, sexuality, ethnicity, ability, and religion. Incorporating DEI initiatives into learning spaces can lead to a deeper sense of self, stronger coalition building, increased civic engagement, and a sense of healing, resistance, and belonging. Although a nationwide criteria for using DEI practices in education has not yet been implemented as a key component to public school teaching, there are programs emerging with the intent to utilize the theory. This has led to a movement …

Paul R. Williams At Work In Photographs: Tarrying With Cites/Sights/Sites Of Trouble, Denise M. Johnson

CGU Theses & Dissertations

Ariella Azoulay and W. J. T. Mitchell have called for a new users’ manual for photographs, urging that theory finally wrest itself from the authoritative singular gaze of the patriarchal imperial photographer so that the plurality inherent within the ontology of viewing photographs be engaged. Azoulay cogently argues that the photographer is not the only person to act when a photographic event takes place. By turning critical analysis to the photographic subject and advising viewers to both watch and listen to photographs rather than gaze, a space of appearance is activated in which the photographic subject engages in dialogue with …

The Angiogenic Potential Of Ph-Neutral Borophosphate Bioactive Glasses, Bradley A. Bromet, Nathaniel P. Blackwell, Nada Abokefa, Parker Freudenberger, Rebekah L. Blatt, Richard K. Brow, Julie A. Semon

Materials Science and Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Borate bioactive glasses have gained attention in recent years due to their therapeutic and regenerative effects in vivo. However, borate bioactive glasses release alkaline ions, increasing the local pH and creating a toxic environment for cell culture studies. A partial compositional substitution of phosphate for borate can create a pH-neutral glass that does not significantly affect the local pH while still releasing therapeutic ions. In the present study, a series of Na-Ca-borophosphate bioactive glasses with different borate-to-phosphate ratios was evaluated in vitro and in vivo for cytotoxicity and angiogenic effects. Compared to more basic borate glasses, the pH-neutral glasses supported …

Representation Of South Asia In American Television, Zahin Zaima

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

Copley Library Annual Report 2022-2023, Helen K. And James S. Copley Library, University Of San Diego

Copley Library Annual Reports

Message from the Dean; Favorite study destinations, Library Exhibits (Summer 2022-Summer 2023); Department of Anthropology - Hostile Terrain 94 exhibition; Comic Studies and Practices Symposium; Copley's Annual Signature Event - the Digital Initiatives Symposium; Art in the Library: A Feast for the Senses; One Book One San Diego; Winning Student Video for Promoting Renovated Library; Programming Partnerships with the USD Department of History; Candice Marie Benbow - Black History Month/Women's History Month Speaker; Research and Scholarship Recognition Reception; Research Day for Middle School - Copley's Pontem Partnership with Diocese Schools; Upward Bound Tours the Library; Information Literacy Instruction: Bringing Students …

Theorizing The Korean Wave| K(Q)Ueer-Pop For Another World: Toward A Theorization Of Gender And Sexuality In K-Pop, Jungmin Kwon

School of Film Faculty Publications and Presentations

This article argues that the K-pop space, which on one level appears to be homogeneously cishetpatriarchal, actually encompasses multiple configurations of gender and sexual identity. Nonetheless, academic discussions about gender and sexuality in K-pop have been significantly weighted toward the idea of “soft masculinity” regarding male performers, thereby muffling other possible interpretations. I suggest a new term, K(Q)ueerness. It means the aesthetics, imaginations, practices, performances, and ideas of K-pop players sublate binaristic identifications, including masculinity and femininity and heterosexual and homosexual—as well as Butler’s distinction between performance and performativity—to embrace the multifarious expressions of gender and sexuality surrounding K-pop. This …

Identity And Perception Among Aspec Consumers Of Mass Media, Jericho Franke

Theses and Dissertations--Communication

The portrayals of sex and romance, as well as asexuality and aromanticism, in mass media can have a profound impact on the way asexual and aromantic media consumers view relationships and their own identities, and affect the perception and treatment of the aspec community as a whole. This study uses mixed qualitative methods of online discourse analysis and participant interviews to examine the how mass media has shaped the self-perception and life experiences relating to sex and romance among aspec audience members.

Implicit Racial Bias: A Human Computer Interaction Study Using Eye Tracker, Wenfan Zhang

Master's Projects

Contemporary Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) research has an increasing emphasis on reducing ethnicity bias. The study presents a new method to explore and reduce biases using detailed experiments. The experimental procedure involves presenting participants with images of ethnically diverse characters across three conditions. The study's results significantly illuminate ethnicity bias in character selection dynamics. Participants exposed to targeted training interventions displayed a significant shift in preferences for characters engaged in intellectual activities. Notably, this shift was influenced by the ethnicity of the characters involved. Interestingly, the eye-tracking data unveiled distinct patterns of cognitive load, characterized by slower response times and greater …

Roles Unveiled For Membrane-Associated Mucins At The Ocular Surface Using A Muc4 Knockout Mouse Model, Rafael Martinez-Carrasco, Satyanarayan Rachagani, Surinder K. Batra, Pablo Argüeso, M Elizabeth Fini

Journal Articles: Biochemistry & Molecular Biology

Membrane-associated mucins (MAMs) are proposed to play critical roles at the ocular surface; however, in vivo evidence has been lacking. Here we investigate these roles by phenotyping of a Muc4 KO mouse. Histochemical analysis for expression of the beta-galactosidase transgene replacing Muc4 revealed a spiraling ribbon pattern across the corneal epithelium, consistent with centripetal cell migration from the limbus. Depletion of Muc4 compromised transcellular barrier function, as evidenced by an increase in rose bengal staining. In addition, the corneal surface was less smooth, consistent with disruption of tear film stability. While surface cells presented with well-developed microprojections, an increase in …

Becoming A Stem-Focused Catholic School: Insights Into Adopting A Curricular Specialization, Julie W. Dallavis

Journal of Catholic Education

School choice policies seek to increase access to educational opportunities and stimulate innovations in schooling. This study examines the early stages of one such innovation—school-wide curricular specialization—in three Catholic elementary schools adopting a STEM focus and uses interviews to consider how and why different levels of support exist for the shift and under what conditions private and religious schools are prepared to make significant changes in instructional practice. Findings suggest that school resources—material, human, and social along with professional development—play an important role in shaping engagement in the adoption of a school-wide curricular focus.

Experiences Of Learners Who Are Incarcerated With Accessing Educational Opportunities In Ontario, Canada, Ardavan Eizadirad, Tina-Nadia Gopal Chambers

Education Faculty Publications

Access to education is a human right that should be upheld for everyone including individuals who are incarcerated as outlined in Article 26 of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. 25 interviews were conducted between April to June 2021 with various key stakeholders: 5 staff involved with the delivery of educational programs in jails, 10 learners who are or were formerly incarcerated, and 10 representatives from post-secondary institutions or jails. The objective was to identify barriers limiting access to education, while incarcerated and post-release, and how such barriers can be mitigated. Responses were examined using Critical Race Theory …

Modern-Day Neanderthal Genetic Lifewriting, Interspecies Romance, And The Promise Of Multispecies Autoethnography, Travis Brisini

Faculty Publications

Advances in contemporary genetic science have reshaped the narratives whereby individuals and communities make sense of their personal, family, and communal histories. In this process, unknown connections have been revealed and familiar orthodoxies disrupted. This essay examines the consequences of a particularly unusual revelation - the dawning awareness of the presence of nonhuman and archaic human DNA in human genetic lines - for efforts at writing about identity and society. In this autoethnographic account, I examine my own genetic inheritance of Neanderthal DNA, and posit a performative concept of genetic life writing that begins to unpack the complexities of this …

How To Do The History Of Sexual Science, Benjamin Kahan, Greta Lafleur

Faculty Publications

This introduction maps the ways in which sexual scientific thought circulated during the fin de siècle, tracing the interconnections between and breaks in the global circuits of sexological thought and how this circuitry continues to structure sexuality in the present. In so doing, Kahan and LaFleur position their approach and that of the special issue as a whole within the larger field of sexology, placing it in more robust dialogue with sexuality studies and attending in particular to sexology's racial and imperial logics. They examine the ways in which racial science and colonial knowledge constitute sexual science as an amorphous …