Digital Commons Network^™

Bridging Urban Divides: The Impact And Implementation Of Bridge Parks, Elvis Brian Velazquez

Landscape Architecture Theses

This study examines the role bridge parks have in the enhancement of community connectivity across fragmented neighborhoods. By conducting a comparative analysis of bridge parks in various urban settings, identifying the key factors that contribute to their success and the challenges encountered during their development. Using case studies such as The Highline in New York and Klyde Warren Park in Dallas. Diving into the social and economic impacts of bridge parks, the findings state that they foster community bonds and enhance social unity while addressing obstacles such as financial sustainability, ongoing maintenance, and integration with the surrounding area. This study …

Mind The Gap: Bridging A Community Bisected By An Interstate, Brittany Silver

Landscape Architecture Theses

As a result of discrimination in urban design, many communities of color have been forced to pick up the pieces of their neighborhood after they have been paved through by major interstate developments. Among these communities is the historical neighborhood of Bronzeville, Milwaukee, which was destroyed in the 1950s by discriminative urban planning and the development of Interstate 43. In recent years, there has been an uptake in restoration to these communities. Urban design factors such as land caps or land bridges over freeways have been proven successful in reconnecting the communities that have been bisected by interstates. In this …

Dispersal Limits Poleward Expansion Of Mangroves On The West Coast Of North America, Kyle C. Cavanaugh, Dustin Carroll, Rémi Bardou, Tom Van Der Stocken

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

While much attention has been paid to the climatic controls of species' range limits, other factors such as dispersal limitation are also important. Temperature is an important control of the distribution of coastal mangrove forests, and mangrove expansion at multiple poleward range limits has been linked to increasing temperatures. However, mangrove abundances at other poleward range limits have been surprisingly insensitive to climate change, indicating other drivers of range limitation. For example, along the west coast of North America, the poleward mangrove range limits are found on the Baja California and mainland coasts of Mexico, between 26°48ʹ and 30°18ʹN. Non-climatic …

The Future Of Our Future: Designing Early Education For All, Anne Rebecca Manstrom

Architecture Theses

“Disability is a natural part of the human experience and in no way diminishes the right of individuals to participate in or contribute to society” (“About IDEA,” n.d.). Starting from a young age, children strive to be wanted, accepted and included. Elementary schools serve as a launching pad for the rest of everyone's lives. Making sure students, in all capacities, are thought of from the beginning is crucial to successful design. Often, students with learning disabilities are sent to different rooms with different teachers to learn at different rates. What if there was a way to keep all students together …

A Riverfront Revival: Transforming St. Paul's Downtown In Synergy With The Mississippi River, John Roman Meyer

Architecture Theses

St. Paul is the capital city of Minnesota and a very historical area. It is one of the biggest cities in the state and has started the birth of other cities in the metropolitan area. It has been a leader to other cities and is a very important location, but St. Paul still has many issues. The downtown area of the city is located next to the Mississippi River, but the connection is not as strong as it should be. With this, the skyline of the city is not very impressive and could do with some upgrades. While working with …

International Grain Origin Switching: Contract Washouts And Embedded Switching Options, Caleb Hauck

Agribusiness and Applied Economics

Changing dynamics in the international grain trading industry have led to a rise in two new contracting practices colloquially termed washouts and switching options and formally defined as contract washouts and embedded origin switching options. When spatial arbitrage opportunities exist, grain buying firms switch from one origin to another. This thesis documents the increased frequency with which these contract practices have been used and examines the factors that incentivize firms to use them. Using data from 2018 to 2023, two models are developed with a binomial lattice that value these contracting terms. The results indicate that these practices have significant …

Stories Of Separation: Reunifying The Emotional Border Of The Korean 38th Parallel, Samuel Lee Nelson

Architecture Theses

When encountering conditions with unknown aspects, it is an impulse to occupy them with experiences and memories to alleviate the associated feelings and reach a form of understanding. This thesis explores how our understandings are influenced and establish a precedent for architectural interventions to assist in resolving the conditions of the unknown. Following World War II (WWII), the 38th parallel marked the beginning of the separation of the Koreas before it developed into the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). Contrasting the stagnant characteristics of this physical division, the emotional division in Korea has continuously evolved and shifted throughout the years. Designed in …

A Multi-Omics Multi-Environment Prediction In Pulse Crop, Rica Saludares

Plant Sciences

Understanding the genetic bases underlying seed yield and protein, and eventually recombining them in desired genetic backgrounds, continues to be a challenge to pulse crop breeders. Phenotypic selection for seed yield and protein in preliminary yield trials is hindered by the need to phenotype a large number of early-generation lines (>10,000) with limited seeds, resulting to trials with few replications and limited environments. In this study, we evaluated and applied a multi-trait multi-environment (MTME) and a multi-omics prediction framework to address phenotyping bottleneck and the complexities underlying negatively correlated traits, and maximize connectivity among genotypes for predicting performance of …

The Names Of All Wild Things: Field Guides And Environmental Thinking, Frank Izaguirre Phd

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The project first traces the earliest origins of natural history writing, surveying how natural history writing from antiquity presented and categorized the living world, and then how the rise of print culture and growing popularity of natural history writing would facilitate the rise of European empires. Values and conventions emerged that would later feed into the field guide, like the pairing of text and illustration to aid identification and the decontextualizing of plants and animals from their environments.

Near the end of the nineteenth century, the field guide genre emerged. Some wildly popular books, mostly written by women, emphasized the …

The Phylogeny Of Chasmataspidida, B.D. Voss

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Chasmataspidids are a group of Early Paleozoic (Middle Ordovician-Middle Devonian) chelicerates with an unclear phylogenetic placement. Though recent phylogenetic tests that include chasmataspidids support a monophyletic Chasmataspidida as sister to a Sclerophorata (Eurypterida+Arachnida) clade, very few previous phylogenetic analyses have sampled more than three of the fourteen currently recognized species. Without a robustly tested phylogenetic hypothesis, understanding macroevolutionary and biogeographic trends within chasmataspidids is difficult. Chasmataspidids also represent the earliest preserved euchelicerate in the fossil record, with Chasmataspis laurencii Caster and Brooks, 1956, dated to approximately 478 million years ago, and the group’s relationship to other euchelicerates has implications on …

Factors Related To Adolescent Anger In Appalachia: Implications For Violence Prevention, Rosalina Mills

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Background. Adolescent health outcomes are vitally important for public health. One such outcome includes adolescent violence, a persistent and prevalent public health issue in the United States. Adolescent violence in rural areas is particularly understudied and some measures of rural violence are underreported compared to violence metrics in urban areas. A key risk factor for adolescent violence, is anger. By examining known key risk factors for adolescent anger through a primary prevention and socioecological perspective, it may be possible to reduce or prevent downstream violence in adolescence and later adulthood. Identifying specific systemic, environmental, and interpersonal factors related to anger …

Sexual Identity And Homophily: The Powerful Role Of Sexual Identity For Romantic Partner Selection, Lee Thorpe Jr

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This dissertation investigates the role of sexual identity on homophily, and its effects on romantic partner selection. The principle of homophily states that individuals tend to befriend and seek romantic partners who are most similar to themselves based on certain social characteristics (i.e., birds of a feather flock together). The majority of the homophily literature focuses on heterosexual friendships and coupling. Recently, homophily research has included sexual identity in their analyses. However, recent studies have only investigated friendship formation/bonds for lesbians and describing certain racial coupling types for individuals based on their sexual identity. I fill the lacuna in research …

Fluid-Rock And Fluid-Steel Interaction In Geothermal Energy Development In The Appalachain Basin, Samuel H. Bowman

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The ever-increasing demand for clean energy requires creative solutions. In the United States, unconventional energy sources such as geothermal are conventionally limited to the western half of the country. The Appalachian Basin in the Eastern United States is one such possible creative solution, although the comparatively low temperature gradient presents a significant challenge to delivering economically feasible geothermal energy. An emerging technology is enhanced geothermal systems, these are engineered reservoirs where a working fluid (typically water) is cycled between the subsurface energy source and the energy collection facility at the surface. The liquid water interacts with the geothermal reservoir rock …

Slope Stability Below Historic Pre-Law Mine Benches In The Northern Coalfields Of West Virginia, Muhammad Ali

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

ABSTRACT

Slope stability below historic pre-law mine benches in the northern coalfields of West Virginia

Muhammad Ali

Slope failures and landslides are commonly occurring geohazards in the state of West Virginia and in the Appalachian region due to weak geologic strata, steep slopes, a humid climate, geologically recent river incision, and human landscape modifications. Historic surface mining has resulted in large-scale landscape alterations. Surface mining conducted before the Surface Mine Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA) of 1977 did not require reclamation to approximate original contour; as a result, remnant highwalls and mine benches are common throughout the state and region. …

Reconstructing Δ14c Production Events Using Tree Rings: Does Tree Physiology Affect Estimates Of Atmospheric Δ14c?, Meagan Rory Walker

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Cosmic rays and solar energetic particles (SEP) bombard the Earth’s geomagnetic field, posing a threat to satellites, space stations, and human space exploration. These rays and particles also produce radiocarbon (¹⁴C) in Earth’s atmosphere, thus records of past ¹⁴C concentration in the atmosphere may be indicative of past cosmic and solar activity. Rapid increases in the concentration of atmospheric radiocarbon ¹⁴C, (Miyake events) first identified in tree rings, are thought to be a result of solar eruptive activity triggering the release of solar energetic particles, though the precise nature of past events remains unresolved. The first …

Political Agency In The Occupied House: Reconstructing Memory Through Squatter Resilience At Topf And Sons Historical Museum, Ebony Taylor Martin

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

During the Holocaust the company of J.A Topf and Sons refocused their production to produce and improve a design for corpse incineration ovens. Their contributions streamlined the efficiency and performance of the death camps adding to the mounting death toll. Years after these evens the company grounds were abandoned and then given life again by a leftist youth movement. The squatter’s reinterpreted the history, led tours and utilized the grounds to create a third place for community, art and music. When the city decided to recognize the history of the company, the squatters were forcefully removed, and the building transformed …

An Investigation Of The Performance Of A 140 Kw Solar Panel In West Virginia, Rumana Subnom

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Solar panels are recognized as a viable technology for producing electricity from sunlight. The performance of a solar panel is influenced by factors such as solar irradiance, tilt angle, orientation, shading, panel age, degradation, and various environmental conditions including ambient air temperature, humidity, dust, soil, and snow.

In this research, a mobile solar panel testing system consisting of a mobile cart, a solar panel, and a portable power station was designed and fabricated to evaluate the performance of a solar panel. The battery is equipped with a thermal management system controlling its temperature and charging and discharging system. The current …

Autonomous Object Search Planning In Large-Scale Environments, Matthew A. Collins

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The advancement of autonomous search holds significant promise for applications ranging from emergency response to planetary exploration. This thesis investigates strategies to enhance autonomous search performance in large-scale environments. The main contribution of this work is its practical application in real-world scenarios, where efficient search methods are essential for managing vast amounts of data, particularly in large environments. Effective search planning requires navigating complexities such as limited prior information and managing large state spaces, necessitating advanced strategies to plan with this limited information. Additionally, balancing exploration and exploitation is crucial for optimizing the search process, as it ensures thorough coverage …

Utilizing Suas-Based Remote Sensing For Sustainable Outdoor Recreational Trail Design And Monitoring, Isaac C. Kinder

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This study utilizes sUAS-based remote sensing and hydrologic models to analyze and predict locations susceptible to water-based trail erosion. Erosion is frequently cited as the most significant environmental impact of trails and often requires costly design and management considerations. A professionally designed trail totaling 4 km in length was segmented based on presence or absence of water-based erosion for analyses and then flown with sUAS technology. Three Logistic regression (LR) models were generated utilizing several hydrologic terrain models of varying resolutions to determine the effects of spatial resolution on the models’ predictive accuracies. Receiver operator characteristics, kappa, and overall accuracy …

Encouraging Equity Through Rural Elementary Professional Learning, Jana K. Stone

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This study employed design-based research to explore the efficacy of professional learning materials and approaches in developing social justice advocacy with rural elementary teachers in Appalachia. Bronfenbrenner’s (2005) bioecological theory and Boler’s (1999) pedagogy of discomfort formed the theoretical framework for the design, implementation, and analysis. Mid-way through the study, Allport’s (1954) contact hypothesis was included to inform the revision of intervention approaches. Four elementary teachers attended seven in-person informational discussion meetings over five months. During this time, these teachers also read two books and completed journal responses and surveys. The qualitative data was analyzed using Braun and Clark’s (2006) …

Contentment And Control: The Stonega Coke & Coal Company & Pioneering Welfare Capitalism In Southwest Virginia, Christopher Lloyd Tomlinson

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Founded in 1902, the Stonega Coke & Coal Company was the largest coal operator in Virginia throughout the twentieth century, becoming even larger through its merger with the Westmoreland Coal Company in 1964. Over the course of this long history, the company used a brand of welfare capitalism aimed at keeping miners and their families satisfied enough with their living and working conditions that the workers would develop a sense of loyalty to the company. Management at SC&C termed these practices “contentment sociology.” While many coal operators began shifting away from such practices during the New Deal, SC&C maintained and …

A Practice Improvement Project Improving Tobacco And Nicotine Dependence Treatment Education In A Doctor Of Nursing Practice Program, Kanchan Bhattarai

Nursing

Tobacco use is a global epidemic and the leading cause of preventable mortality and morbidity in the United States (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2022h). Approximately 5.4 million people die annually due to tobacco-related illnesses. About 70% of tobacco users visit primary care clinics annually and even brief advice from clinicians can improve cessation rates ( United States Department of Health and Human Services [USDHHS], 2020). However, four out of nine adult smokers who visited healthcare providers did not receive any advice or counseling on quitting smoking. Lack of training and confidence were identified as a barrier among …

Pediatric Preparedness In A Rural Health System, Sarah Nielsen

Nursing

Pediatric emergencies present significant challenges and emotional strain in healthcare settings. In critical access hospitals, the provision of safe, effective, and high-quality emergency response for pediatric cases is especially demanding. Many rural hospitals have infrequent exposure to pediatric emergency care, which can contribute to a lack of confidence when caring for this population. Diminished confidence in pediatric skills and procedures has been linked with a reduction in overall patient safety. Research on pediatric emergency preparedness in rural settings outlines the need for further multi-faceted education to achieve increased provider comfort and preparedness. The practice improvement project aimed to understand health …

Visit North Carolina: Trail Accessibility, Hannah Caitlyn Guschel

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This paper focuses on the perceived barriers to travel from marketing material for individuals with disabilities compared to those without disabilities and the direct impact on leisurely travel participation, particularly in outdoor spaces. Employing a cross-sectional study design encompassing both quantitative and qualitative data collection methods, this research investigates the experiences and transparency of trail accessibility in the state of North Carolina. Quantitative data were gathered through trail assessment accessibility checklists, while qualitative insights were obtained via in-depth interviews. The findings reveal an improved understanding of accessibility and the application of an accessibility checklist. Moreover, the study underscores the importance …

Advances In Machine Learning Aided Seismic Interpretation And Inversion For Subsurface Characterization, Tobi Micheal Ore

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Geophysical data are used to “remotely sense” the subsurface to illuminate structures, stratigraphy, and features that are of interest in the exploration for energy, suitable storage for carbon dioxide, geothermal development, and environmental considerations. The interpretations of these data typically are regarded as partially an art, as it depends on the experience of the interpreter. This is further exacerbated with the big data era as this data is large and takes several days, even longer, to manually interpret. To bridge this gap of speed and subjective bias, machine learning has been successfully applied to automate the geophysical interpretation process. This …

Estimating Home Range Size And Density Of White-Tailed Deer (Odocoileus Virginianus) In West Virginia, Sarah M. Pesi

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Big game hunting is an important source of revenue and recreation in the United States. Of big game species, white-tailed deer (Odocileus virginianus) are the most heavily pursued. White-tailed deer are a widespread generalist species, capable of existing at high densities. Hunting is often used as the primary method of managing deer populations, particularly in the eastern United States, where there is a lack of large predators. When populations reach high densities, there can be negative effects on the environment and conflicts with humans. Managers must consider both creating adequate hunting opportunities and reducing negative impacts when managing …

Characterizing Prescribed Fire With Terrestrial Lidar In The New Jersey Pine Barrens, Samuel Rhule Stockton

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Prescribed burning has become a commonly used tool in the mitigation of wildfire, though monitoring the way it changes ecosystems has historically been a time-intensive process. Rapid change across ecosystems has necessitated advancements in remote sensing technologies to quantify the changes taking place. Single-scan terrestrial LiDAR scanning is one such method of monitoring these changes through the quantification of ecosystem structural characteristics. Acute disturbance events such as fire can transform the structure of an ecosystem, and by extension, change the way that ecosystem functions. The purpose of this study is to analyze the changes in vegetation density and distribution following …

Geochemical Phase Associations Of Rare Earth Elements And Lithium In Black Shales Of The Usa: A Study In The Appalachian And Haynesville Basins, Shailee Bhattacharya

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Critical elements are an indispensable part of the clean energy transition. In the race for alternative energy technologies, lithium and rare earth elements have a proven record of being few of the most sought-after minerals. Limited availability of conventional mineral ores warrants a need to explore, understand and exploit unconventional sources of these elements. To that end, several studies have attempted to understand the rock and mineral assemblages of diverse geological systems. This doctoral thesis focuses on understanding the geochemistry of REE and Li in sedimentary environments, particularly black shale basins in the US. A suite of samples from natural …

Utilizing Arcgis Storymap To Raise Awareness: Double Dispossession Of The Gullah Geechee On Sapelo Island, Noah A. Moulton

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The Gullah Geechee people, descendants of enslaved Africans brought to the Sea Islands of the Atlantic Coast, represent a resilient community whose heritage and practices have endured despite centuries of systemic oppression. This research examines the intersection of history, land dispossession, and environmental threats to the Gullah Geechee community, particularly on Sapelo Island. By exploring the enduring agricultural knowledge, language, and practices, this work underscores the significance of the Gullah Geechee's connection to their ancestral lands, which have been essential for the preservation of their identity. The dual forces of gentrification and climate change present pressing challenges, manifesting as both …

A Gis Tool For Optimal Forage Species Selection, David B. Hannaway, Christopher Daly, Michael D. Halbleib, Linda Brewer, Sophie Baur, Chelsea Clark, Emilie Krecklow, Scott Bassett

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

To determine appropriate forage species for US ecoregions, geographic information technologies (GIS) are being used to create climatic and soil factor maps. Excel spreadsheets and RStudio are used to create response functions of forage species to minimum and maximum temperature, annual precipitation, soil pH, soil salinity, and salinity. National forage data and expert opinion will evaluate quantitative tolerances, seasonal yield profiles, and pollinator suitability. These maps and agronomic and livestock use information will be shared with forage specialists and farmers to provide alternatives for improved perenniality, increased diversity, and system circularity. Future work will include development and evaluation of climate …