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Creativity, Innovation And Patronage: A Catalog Of Rockingham Designs At The Victoria And Albert Museum, Stella Koslowski

MA in Fine and Decorative Art and Design Dissertations

This dissertation catalogs a portion of the Rockingham design book recently acquired by the Victoria and Albert Museum, which comprises over six hundred designs of Biscuit Painting Patterns and China Tea and Dessert Patterns. This research aims to broaden the understanding and appreciation of the pottery, as well as establish the significance of innovation and experimentation in early English porcelain designs. Each catalog entry includes high quality images of the designs as well as comparative analysis with objects made by Rockingham and other factories around the world, bringing further richness to the understanding of the designs.

The dissertation is grounded …

A Quantitative Analysis Of Burrowing And Subterranean Locomotion In The Sand Lance Using A Transparent Sediment, Issei Fujita, Makoto Tomiyasu, Jun Yamamoto, Yasuzumi Fujimori

Journal of Marine Science and Technology–Taiwan

Sand lances (Ammodytes spp.) rely on rapid burrowing into sediment for predator avoidance. Although their sediment grain-size preferences are well documented, the biomechanics underlying burrowing success remain unclear because natural substrates are opaque. Using a transparent-sediment system, we directly visualized and quantified burrowing kinematics to: (1) test the effect of body size (total length, TL) on burrowing success; (2) examine entry mechanisms (e.g., swimming speed, entry angle); and (3) describe locomotion within sediment. Logistic regression on the full dataset (N = 28 fish) identified TL as the primary determinant of success, with larger individuals exhibiting significantly higher success …

Improved Climate Services In Hawai‘I: The Collaborative Development Of Drought-Related Decision Support Tools, Ryan J. Longman, Derek Ford, Cherryle Heu, Jennifer Geis, Abby Frazier, Christian P. Giardina, James T. Potemra, Sean B. Cleveland, John J. Marra

Geography

Rising temperatures, prolonged droughts, and increasingly variable rainfall are negatively impacting natural and cultural resources and agricultural production systems in Hawai‘i. To effectively manage resources in the face of these changes, stewards and producers now require accurate, timely, and site-specific climate data and information. However, access to such data as well as the ability to interpret available data remain limited for many sectors. In response to various needs, a team of scientists working with the Pacific Drought Knowledge Exchange (PDKE) has developed two open-source decision-support tools (DSTs) through a collaborative, user-informed process aimed at closing longstanding gaps in local climate …

"The Queen's Grace Heartily Thanks You For The Quails:" Honor Lisle And The Role Of Gift-Giving In The Education And Preferment Of Her Children, Alexa Renee Gordon

Honors Program Theses

No abstract provided.

Development Of An Adhesive Emulsion Hydrogel For Soft Tissue Reconstruction, David J. Alpert

Dissertations and Theses

Soft tissue filling materials are most commonly associated with various aesthetic, cosmetic procedures, primarily using lightly cross-linked hyaluronic acid to fill wrinkles and give facial features a more youthful appearance. These natural materials are biocompatible but degrade over time while more persistent synthetic fillers may provoke a chronic inflammatory response. Migration from the injection site is also a key factor as this may not only render the implant non- functional but necessitate further procedures for removal of the foreign material. Such concerns are more pronounced for soft tissue reconstruction procedures (e.g., to treat congenital defects or traumatic injuries), which require …

Design, Testing And Controls For Air Source Heat Pump System In Cold Climates Using Natural & Conventional Refrigerants, S M Abdur Rob

Dissertations and Theses

Fossil-fuel based heating systems used in the residential buildings in northeastern U.S region are not only inefficient but also largely responsible for the greenhouse gas emissions in U.S. Electrification of the buildings has been proved to be the most efficient way to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions where Heat Pumps can be the best alternative to replace the natural gas based heating system to accelerate the electrification process. Among different types of heat pumps, the Air Source Heat Pump (ASHP) system is widely used due to the easy installation and energy efficiency. Conventional heat pump technologies use various types of …

Hybridization And Introgression In Marine Invertebrates: Population Genomics Of Phymactis Papillosa And Asterias Sea Stars, Christopher J. Dookie

Dissertations and Theses

Hybridization and introgression are evolutionary significant processes in marine invertebrates (Sanford & Kelly,2011) yet genome-wide investigations of gene flow in these taxa remain limited relative to vertebrate systems (Marchi et al., 2021). This thesis presents genomic analyses of hybridization and introgression in two marine invertebrates occupying contrasting oceanographic settings and characterized by contrasting genomic datasets: restriction-site associated DNA sequencing (RADseq) SNP data for the eastern Pacific sea anemone Phymactis papillosa and whole genome sequencing (WGS) data for the North Atlantic sea stars Asterias rubens and Asterias forbesi. For each system, I applied coalescent-based species tree inference using CASTER (Zhang …

Mad Or Uncontrollable? Reading Female Madness In Three Gothic Texts, Amy Marie Bueno

Dissertations and Theses

My thesis employs comparative close reading framed by disability studies to analyze representations of female madness in Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre, Jean Rhys’ Wide Sargasso Sea, and Isabel Allende’s “If You Touched My Heart.” Drawing on theories of socially constructed disability, it argues that Bertha, Antoinette, and Hortensia are framed as “mad women” not through inherent pathology, but through patriarchal violence, colonial domination, and institutional power. By integrating the social model of disability with feminist theory, this thesis examines how women are rendered disabled within societies influenced by Social Darwinism and eugenic ideologies.

This thesis further incorporates Gothic theory and …

Financing Global Health Governance: The World Health Organization, The Who Foundation, And The Shifting Landscape Of Development Financing, Johanny O. Reyes

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis analyzes the structural financing challenges facing the World Health Organization (WHO) and their implications for global health governance. It argues that WHO’s financial fragility is not merely a technical problem but the result of long-standing political and institutional choices that have shifted the Organization away from predictable public financing toward donor-driven, earmarked voluntary contributions. Drawing on WHO constitutional provisions, programme budget data, governance documents, and academic literature, the study traces the evolution of WHO’s financing model and examines how this transformation has constrained the Organization’s priority-setting authority, operational flexibility, and normative leadership.

The COVID-19 pandemic serves as a …

Disaster Risk Management During Climate Emergencies In The Dominican Republic And Puerto Rico, Rosleny Ubinas

Dissertations and Theses

This paper analyzes the DRM approach as an effective framework in addressing climate emergencies across the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. These two Caribbean regions, with high hurricane exposure and differing response structures, are deeply shaped by their governments and affiliated international organizations. Disaster Risk Management is the systematic process of using laws, plans, institutions, and community networks to reduce vulnerability to hazards and coordinate effective response when disasters occur. It covers the full cycle, from prevention to reconstruction and rebuilding more resiliently. The Dominican Republic’s law-based intervention led to greater local-level community participation during disasters with its embedded volunteer …

Executive Self-Management Of Reading And Writing For College Students With Adhd, Jiajie Li

Dissertations and Theses

Background. College students with ADHD often experience difficulties with self managed academic tasks, for which there are currently few specific interventions. The present study examined associations among ADHD symptom severity, executive functioning, academic achievement, and perceived helpfulness of reading- and writing-focused sessions within a cognitive-behavioral intervention for college students with ADHD. Method. N = 41 undergraduate students (Mean age = 21.32 years, SD = 2.74; 70.7% female) with ADHD were recruited into a 12-week group-based cognitive behavioral intervention for executive functioning difficulties. Two sessions were devoted to skills and strategies specific to academic tasks, Reading for Retention and Planning, Organizing, …

The Ick Factor: Explaining The Term Through Lenses Of Sexual Disgust And Avoidant Attachment Style, Maxum O'Halloran

Dissertations and Theses

The phenomenon of the “ick” has gained significant traction in the context of modern romantic relationships, particularly across social media platforms, where individuals describe trivial negative traits and habits in potential and current romantic partners. Despite their trivial nature, icks are often treated as meaningful dealbreakers, raising questions about whether they reflect genuine psychological processes or are simply a social media trend. The present study examined whether the presence of an ick influences perceptions of attractiveness and dateability, and whether individual differences in sexual disgust sensitivity and attachment style help explain icks and reactions to icks. Participants (N = 236) …

Relational Spirituality And Maternal Coping In Carceral Contexts: A Participatory Action Study Of Meaning-Making And Mental Health Among Formerly Incarcerated Mothers, Jessica Peters

Dissertations and Theses

Maternal incarceration carries significant psychological, familial, and community consequences, yet limited research centers the mental health experiences of mothers themselves. This study explored how religious and spiritual engagement shape mental health and coping among formerly incarcerated mothers using a participatory action research framework. Guided by this, small groups and semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 mothers in collaboration with a community-based organization. This approach prioritized lived experience and aimed to reduce barriers to participation among a population often mistrustful of research institutions. Data were analyzed thematically to identify patterns in psychological distress, coping strategies, and meaning-making. Findings revealed pervasive and …

Shared Burden, Potential Space: A Qualitative Study Of How Psychodynamic Therapists Work With Intergenerational Transmission Of Historical Trauma, Shaun J. Halper

Dissertations and Theses

The intergenerational transmission of trauma (ITT) has been investigated since the 1960s, beginning with research on the descendants of Holocaust survivors. Few qualitative studies, however, have taken up how psychodynamic therapists experience their treatments with adult patients with ITT. This study uses Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (APA) to analyze adult ITT treatments from the perspective of psychodynamic psychotherapists. Ten licensed clinicians in the NYC tri-state area participated in semi-structured interviews, which were organized around three research aims: how clinicians conceptualized and identified ITT, what effective clinical interventions they used, and how they understood the impact of therapist-patient sameness or difference (regarding …

Examining The Spatial Variability Of Summer Heat In New York City Using Landsat Land Surface Temperature, Ryan Kabir

Dissertations and Theses

Extreme heat is the leading weather-related cause of death in the United States, and in New York City (NYC) approximately 370 heat-related deaths occur annually on average. The spatial distribution of surface heat exposure across NYC is highly uneven, low-income neighborhoods and communities of color consistently face higher temperatures, yet the intraurban spatial structure of land surface temperature (LST) during heatwave events has not been systematically characterized at high resolution. The New York City Panel on Climate Change Fourth Assessment (NPCC4) identifies this as an explicit research gap, noting that its own projections, based on global climate models downscaled to …

Civil War Memory In New York City, 1861-1902, Kevin J. Sugrue

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis examines how New York City experienced, understood, and later remembered the American Civil War, from the outbreak of war (1861) through the dedication of major monuments at the turn of the twentieth century (1902). Although New York was the Union’s largest city and its most significant source of troops, casualties, industrial output, financial capital, and press coverage, the city’s wartime experience was deeply conflicted. As a Democratic stronghold and home to large populations of recent immigrants and working-class laborers, New York’s support for the Union was broad but conditional, fractured by class, ethnicity, race, and political allegiance. These …

Dna Barcoding Complements Citizen Science Identifications In An Arthropod Survey At Governors Island, New York, Malky Gestetner

Dissertations and Theses

Arthropods are declining worldwide, threatened by habitat loss, climate change, and growing urbanization. Efforts to monitor arthropod biodiversity are crucial for conservation policies and for maintaining the ecosystem services provided by these animals in urban environments. Surveys of arthropods have been attempted in many New York neighborhoods, but no formal assessment has been conducted on Governors Island, which harbors 72-acres of parkland within a short boat ride away from Manhattan. This is a deficiency which this study helps to address. Following student-led collection efforts within four Governors Island sites, DNA barcoding was employed to complement specimen identification based on morphology …

Reproducing The French-Canadian Settler Collective In Ontario Through French Language Rights, Monique Woolnough

Journal of Law and Social Policy

Much of settler colonial theory and studies in Canada has focused on the dominant British settler colonial power, with an emerging spotlight on Quebec. Little attention has been paid to French-Canadian settler colonialism in French-Canadian minority provinces such as Ontario. This research aims to make visible this gap in attention and begin to fill in its contours by understanding how the French-Canadian settler colonial project operates in Ontario through law. Through the application of Indigenous, settler colonial, socio-legal and critical feminist and race theories to a review of narrative themes in the jurisprudence of courts and tribunals interpreting Ontario’s French …

Establishing A Rigorous And Standardized Volunteer-Led Hypertension Screening Program: An Implementation Science Approach Using Cfir, Alexander Boakye

Public Health Theses

Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is a common condition characterized by elevated blood pressure. It is a major risk factor for global cardiovascular disease-related illness and death [1]. Uncontrolled hypertension raises the risk of heart attack, heart failure, kidney disease, stroke, and cognitive decline [2-4]. Although routine blood pressure screening, patient education, and early linkage to care are proven strategies for detecting and managing hypertension, awareness, treatment, and control rates remain suboptimal in the United States and worldwide [5,6]. Community-based hypertension programs involving trained non-clinical personnel have shown effectiveness in increasing screening participation and improving blood pressure control, especially among …

Dietary, Physical Activity, Mental Health And Substance Use Among Adolescents In American Samoa: A Cross-Sectional Study, Arwen Chen

Public Health Theses

Adolescent mental health is an important public health concern in American Samoa, but limited research has examined how modifiable health behaviors relate to mental health outcomes in this population. This cross-sectional study examined associations of dietary patterns, sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) consumption, and physical activity with depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and substance use among 449 high school students in American Samoa. Depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, substance use, diet, and physical activity were assessed using self-reported survey measures, including the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 for Adolescents (PHQ-9A), Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 scale (GAD-7), Dietary Screener Questionnaire (DSQ) items, and the Physical Activity Questionnaire for …

Stigma, Coping & Resilience Among Hiv+ Pwid In St. Petersburg, Rf, Gabrielle Bogut

Public Health Theses

Russia and the other countries that comprised the Soviet Union constitute the one region in which the HIV epidemic continues to expand. Unlike most other regions, more than a quarter of HIV cases in Russia resulted from unsafe injection among people who inject drugs (PWID), and St. Petersburg is among the cities with the highest rates and case counts of HIV. Our study sought to identify actionable psychosocial characteristics influencing receipt of antiretroviral therapy (ART) in PWID. This study assessed survey results from 225 HIV-positive individuals recruited from a Russian NGO that provides PWID with harm reduction services. Individuals were …

Scaling Up Long-Acting Hiv Prep: Perspectives From Health Practitioners On Implementation Of Twice Yearly Lenacapavir, Taylor Braunstein

Public Health Theses

BackgroundLenacapavir (LEN), a twice-yearly subcutaneous injectable Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) medication for HIV, was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2025. LEN represents a significant advancement in HIV prevention, demonstrating 99.96-100% efficacy in the PURPOSE 1 and 2 clinical trials12,21. Despite its promise in HIV prevention, high list prices, complex loading regimens, and implementation uncertainties pose barriers to widespread uptake. This study examines provider perspectives on the acceptability, feasibility, and appropriateness of LEN as PrEP, as well as perceived implementation barriers and facilitators. Methods This mixed-methods, cross-sectional study recruited licensed US practitioners (RNs, NPs, PAs, MDs, DOs, and …

Multi-Level Barriers And Facilitators To Hiv Care Engagement Among Women Exposed To Intimate Partner Violence, Bernard Frempong

Public Health Theses

Background: WLWH face persistent gaps in HIV care engagement, and IPV is a critical determinant of health in this population. Few studies have examined barriers and facilitators to care by current IPV exposure and relationship status using mixed methods.Methods: We analyzed cross-sectional baseline data from 158 WLWH (M age=54.9 years [SD=10.41]) with lifetime IPV exposure enrolled in the I-CARE study in Connecticut. Participants were grouped by: (1) IPV with a current partner (n=74, 46.8%), (2) currently partnered without IPV (n=19, 12.0%), and (3) not currently partnered (n=65, 41.1%). Barriers and facilitators to HIV care engagement were assessed quantitatively and qualitatively …

Ethics Training For Community Researchers Engaged In Participatory Research: An Analysis Investigating Current Practices In Low-Income Countries, Chioma Chukwunedu

Public Health Theses

Participatory Research (PR) involves individuals affected by a research problem as active collaborators rather than passive subjects. While this approach emphasizes ethical and contextually relevant practices, existing literature suggests that ethics training for community researchers in low-income countries is inconsistently implemented and often not culturally adapted. This study examines how ethics training is currently provided to community researchers engaged in PR in low-income countries.A secondary analysis was conducted using manuscripts identified through a prior systematic review of PR studies in low-income settings. Corresponding authors of included studies were invited to complete an online Qualtrics survey regarding ethics training, participatory research …

Physiological Predictors Of Long-Term Diabetes Risk Among Asian Women With Gestational Diabetes: A Scoping Review, Haiyi Guo

Public Health Theses

Objective:To identify risk factors associated with the progression from gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) to type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) among women in East Asia. East Asian populations were selected as the focus because previous studies suggest that women in this region may experience a disproportionately high risk of progression after GDM, even at lower body mass index levels than those typically observed in Western populations. A clearer understanding of these risk factors may help inform more targeted postpartum prevention strategies. Methods: A scoping review was conducted using PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Library, CNKI, VIP, and SinoMed databases, covering studies published …

Intergenerational Meaning-Making In Cambodian Americans, Caitlin Gojuk

Public Health Theses

Background: Cambodian Americans face high psychological distress yet remain underrepresented in research, especially second-generation individuals. Intergenerational trauma, stigma, and family dynamics shape mental health understanding and expression. Objective: This study examines how Cambodian American young adults make sense of mental health and distress through cultural identity, family relationships, and inherited meanings of trauma. Methods: In-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with six second-generation Cambodian American young adults residing in Massachusetts, United States. Participants completed brief measures of depression and anxiety symptoms (PHQ-8; GAD-7) to provide a descriptive context. Interviews were analyzed using inductive thematic analysis informed by relational, narrative, and ecological …

Cost-Effectiveness Analysis Of Twice-Yearly Injectable Lenacapavir Versus Daily Oral Prep For Hiv Prevention Among Men Who Have Sex With Men In China, Xueqing Guo

Public Health Theses

Men who have sex with men (MSM) remain a key at-risk population in China’s HIV epidemic while the real-world effectiveness of daily oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) among MSM has been limited by low uptake and suboptimal drug adherence. Lenacapavir, a first-in-class capsid inhibitor administered twice yearly, emerged as a highly efficacious, long-acting prevention strategy with the potential to reduce drug burdens associated with current PrEP strategy. However, its high price ($28,000 per patient per year) raises major affordability concerns, and its economic value in China remains understudied. This study aimed to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of lenacapavir compared with daily oral …

Water Resource Governance And Health Equity In Angola, Mads Harner

Public Health Theses

AbstractBackground: Angola is confronting a set of intertwined challenges including water insecurity, increasing climate variability, and deep structural inequality that together intensify the burden of waterborne and water-related diseases (Lombana Cordoba et al., 2021; World Health Organization, 2025). Roughly half of the population does not have reliable access to safe drinking water, and gaps in sanitation and hygiene infrastructure, especially in peri-urban and rural areas, facilitate the spread of illnesses such as cholera, diarrheal diseases, and malaria (UNICEF Angola, 2025; Moreira et al., 2012). These issues are further exacerbated by drought and broader climate variability, and underlying them are historical …

Using The Behavior Change Wheel To Understand The Role Of Antimicrobial Stewardship Programs, Siqi Jiang

Public Health Theses

Objectives: This review aimed to summarize recent antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs) implemented in pediatric outpatient settings and analyze how these interventions influence appropriate antibiotic use.Methods: PubMed and Scopus were searched for studies published between 2016 and 2026 globally. Studies were included if they evaluated an antimicrobial stewardship intervention in a pediatric outpatient setting. Only English studies are included. Studies that describe the results of implementations and policies related to ASP are included, including randomized controlled trials, quasi-experiments, natural experiments, quality improvement studies and observational studies, and longitudinal studies. Interventions in selected articles were analyzed using the COM-B (Capability, Opportunity, Motivation-Behavior) …

Family-Related Stressors And Mental Health Among Internally Displaced Young Adults In Mozambique: A Mixed-Methods Study With Implications For Global Mental Health Interventions, Jaspreet Kandola

Public Health Theses

Mental health outcomes among displaced populations are shaped by post-displacement stressors, yet the role of family dynamics, specifically, remains insufficiently understood. This study examines how family-related stressors are associated with mental health among internally displaced young adults in Nampula Province, Mozambique. Using a convergent parallel mixed methods design, this study integrated survey data from 601 participants with qualitative data from in-depth interviews with a subsample of 16 participants. Quantitative analyses showed that family separation and concern for family members in conflict zones were associated with higher posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, with family separation also linked to higher anxiety and …