Digital Commons Network^™

Built For Business: The Commercial Need For Aggregate Litigation, Jack Zarin-Rosenfeld

Hofstra Law Faculty Scholarship

Commercial actors long have argued that class actions are bad for business. But for even longer, business groups have supported other types of aggregate litigation that closely resemble class actions, such as expansive federal bankruptcy. While critics have successfully limited national aggregation via class actions, they have not even attempted to criticize aggregation via bankruptcy.

Why have business groups attacked aggregate litigation in some cases and supported it in others? This Article provides an answer by examining aggregation's origins and development, and what emerges, it turns out, is very much the opposite of what aggregation's pro-business critics would have us …

The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank And China’S New Colonialism In Cambodia, Sigit -, Elizabeth -

Asian Review

This paper aims to analyses Cambodia's response to China's new colonialism through the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) using qualitative methods and hegemony as the conceptual framework. As the second-largest economy, China has ambitions to surpass other countries, such as the United States. The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is the first project, launched in 2013, to gain worldwide penetration of China under the mask of investment and trade. To finance BRI, China inaugurated AIIB in 2015 as its second project. AIIB invites dynamic Asian countries to invest in technology-enabled green infrastructure. After gaining the trust of Asian countries, China …

The Development Of The Cities: The Kazakh Case, Dinara Umarova

Asian Review

The article is devoted to the development of Kazakh capital city Astana. The methodology of the research provides literature review on issues of urbanization and economic growth, comparative study, use of empirical and descriptive methods, and based on official statistics and statistical methods. The research confirms that status of the city and capital status of Astana ensure its competitiveness at the national level and in comparison with some leading regional Kazakh cities such as Almaty, Shymkent and Aktobe. The main indicators of the socio-economic situation in Astana are comparatively better. In particular, the capital city has relatively low rates of …

Consociational Democracy In Post-War Lebanon: Maintain-Ing Negative Peace And Stability Amidst Sectarian Divisions, Kasidech Somboonkittichai

Asian Review

Is consociational democracy the only viable solution for maintaining direct negative peace and stability in contemporary Lebanon? This paper argues in favour of consociational democracy as the most effective approach to preserving direct negative peace and stability in post-war Lebanon. The rationale behind this claim stems from the impracticality and unsuitability of alternative solutions, particularly transformative liberal approaches, within Lebanon's specific context. Implementing such alternatives would jeopardise cooperation among elites representing different sectarian groups, leading to a perilous power vacuum and the potential for civil war reoccurrence. To contribute to the academic discourse, this paper systematically examines Lebanon's post-war regime …

Estimation Of Respiratory Disease Burden Attributed To Particulate Matter From Biomass Burning In Northern Thailand Using 1-Km Resolution Maiac-Aod, Anuttara Hongthong, Kampol Nanthapong, Thongchai Kanabkaew

Applied Environmental Research

The upper northern Thailand suffers from air pollution due to open burning, which has been known for a long time. It was also found that different respiratory diseases were attributed to air pollution, especially particulate matter. This study estimated the health impacts attributed to PM10 between 2014 and 2016 using the burden of disease in terms of the disability adjusted life year (DALYs). The spatial correlation was evaluated based on applicable remote sensing data using the geographically weighted regression (GWR) model. The average measured PM10 concentrations for the summer and annual periods between 2014 and 2016 were 73 and 89 …

Microplastic Contamination In The Coastal Environment: A Case Study From The Mae Klong River, Samut Songkhram, Pattraporn Chaisanguansuk, Suphak Ploenbuppa, Thitiphan Assawincharoenkij, Sumet Phantuwongraj, Akkaneewut Jiraphinyakul

Applied Environmental Research

To investigate the microplastic contamination in the coastal area in Samut Songkhram, we collected sediment samples from six locations in mangrove forests along the Mae Klong River estuary (MK) and the nearby Khlong Khon canal (KK). The microplastics were extracted by ZnCl2 density separation and subsequently H2O2 digestion. The microplastic abundance and physical properties, including their size, color, and shape, were determined under the binocular microscope. The selected microplastic samples were analyzed by µ-FTIR spectroscopy to identify their polymer types. Microplastic concentrations were c. 580 and 1690 items kg-1 d.w. in the samples from MK and KK. The lower microplastic …

Health Impacts From Pm2.5 Exposure Using Environmental Epidemiology And Health Risk Assessment: A Review, Thanakon Sukuman, Kayo Ueda, Sarunya Sujaritpong, Hirunwut Praekunatham, Kornwipa Punnasiri, Tuangsit Wimuktayon, Trakarn Prapaspongsa

Applied Environmental Research

Exposure to PM2.5 has been known to cause a variety of serious health consequences. Quantifying and investigating the health effects of PM2.5 pollution are imperative to understand and collect scientific evidence for supporting policies and associated actions. In this paper, we reviewed published environ-mental epidemiological studies and health risk assessments evaluating the health impacts of PM2.5 exposure in the PubMed database to identify the attributes of each method and aggregate the health impact results to perform analyses and summaries. Forty-two studies were identified after applying our search strategy, inclusion, and exclusion criteria. The epidemiological studies found an increased risk of …

Enhancing Community Resiliency With Big Data And Machine Learning: Property Damage And Flood Forecasting During Hurricanes, Mujungu Lawrence Museru

All ETDs from UAB

Globally, coastal communities face significant vulnerability to the risks and impacts of flooding. This study addresses two critical aspects of flood management: enhanced flood damage assessment and coastal flooding prediction. Traditional flood damage modeling techniques have limitations, and the availability of comprehensive datasets is limited. The first part addresses these challenges. Multivariable machine learning models are applied to enhance flood damage assessment. A comprehensive dataset is developed by combining the Alabama property dataset with the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims dataset from Hurricane Katrina. Spatial varying datasets are added to enhance the comprehensiveness of NFIP dataset and oversampling techniques …

An Examination Of Clinical Pain Severity, Sleep Quality, And Neighborhood Disadvantage In A Racially/Ethically Diverse Sample Of Adults With Symptomatic Knee Osteoarthritis, Cesar Emmanuel Gonzalez

All ETDs from UAB

Knee osteoarthritis (OA) is often accompanied by insomnia symptoms, character-ized by difficulty falling asleep, maintaining sleep, or both. Among individuals with knee OA, up to 31% report significant difficulty falling asleep, 81% have difficulties staying asleep, and up to 77% report any sleep problem. However, the sleep and pain relationship has also rarely been evaluated using objective and subjective sleep measures. Thus, this study attempted to characterize objective and subjective sleep variables in a diverse sam-ple of individuals with symptomatic knee OA. Further, the impact of objective and sub-jective sleep quality on clinical pain severity, movement-evoked pain, and physical func-tion …

Impact Of Covid-19 On The Agency Of Metropolitan Community College Designated School Officials: A Mixed Methods Study, Stacye Fraser Thompson

All ETDs from UAB

The COVID-19 pandemic created a crisis all over the world challenging traditional methods of business practices, teaching, and administration in the educational sphere. International education has been particularly affected; many individuals working in different areas of the profession had to enact emergency triage to aid the more than one million international students in the United States. This dissertation explores one profession within international education, that of Primary Designated School Official (PDSO) and Designated School Officials (DSO), who work directly with international students. Specifically, this research will examine the factors that influence P/DSOs agency at metropolitan community colleges and their lived …

Patterns Of Fatal Drug Overdose_ A Multi-City Investigation Of Geospatial Correlates, Keith R. Chichester

All ETDs from UAB

Fatal drug overdoses are now the leading cause of accidental death in the U.S., responsible for over 107,600 deaths in 2021. Since 2000 the rate of overdose fatalities has increased over 140%. This epidemic has been particularly impactful in rural areas as from 2006-2016, the rural overdose death rate surpassed those in urban areas. Geospatial analytics provide an effective strategy for identifying profiles and patterns in the spatial distribution of overdose locations as well as geographic and demographic variables that associate with overdose occurrences. Furthermore, predictive risk modeling platforms allow for the identification of anticipated overdose hotspots across a geography …

A Colorblind Approach To Silencing African American Voices Through The Banning Of Critical Race Theory, Mia J. Freeman

All ETDs from UAB

This thesis focused on addressing the framing of criticisms of Toni Morrison's Beloved in the state of Virginia through the context of African American Criticism and Critical Race Theory. The methodology undertaken addresses the central research question, How might African American Criticism and Critical Race Theory provide a theoretical framework for responding to recent criticisms about Beloved? The researcher approached Beloved by historicizing select passages from the novel and situating those passages and the realities they reflect in the context of criticisms waged by parents and politicians. The thesis also explained how tenets of African American Criticism and Critical Race …

A Comparative Assessment Of Human Factors In Cybersecurity: Implications For Cyber Governance, Muhammad Umair Shah, Farkhund Iqbal, Umair Rehman, Patrick C.K. Hung

All Works

This paper provides an extensive overview of cybersecurity awareness in the young, educated, and technology-savvy population of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), compared to the United States of America (USA) for advancing the scholarship and practice of global cyber governance. We conducted comparative empirical studies to identify differences in specific human factors that affect cybersecurity behaviour in the UAE and the USA. In addition, we employed several control variables to observe reliable results. We used Hofstede’s theoretical framework on culture to advance our investigation. The results show that the targeted population in the UAE exhibits contrasting interpretations of cybersecurity awareness …

Understanding How Multi-Level Factors Influence Cancer Clinical Trial Enrollment Decisions By Patients Living In Higher Disadvantaged Areas, Nicole Caston

All ETDs from UAB

Cancer clinical trials offer current patients with cancer new treatment and novel interventions to treat their cancer, while advancing the care of future patients. Clinical trials test new drugs against the standard of care to determine drug efficacy and safety. There are many groups of patients who are either unrepresented or underrepresented in cancer clinical trials and there is a plethora of reasons they are not represented. One underrepresented population of interest is patients with cancer who live in highly disadvantaged neighborhoods. Previous research found that when compared to patients who live in areas of lower disadvantage, patients living in …

Challenges And Opportunities In Glioblastoma And Immunovirotherapy With Oncolytic Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1, Dagoberto Estevez-Ordonez

All ETDs from UAB

This dissertation covers data from published and pre-published studies exploring challenges and opportunities in the treatment of malignant glioma with emphasis in glioblastoma and oncolytic immunovirotherapy with an oncolytic herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) designed to induce expression of IL-12, M002 (murine IL-12) and M032 (human IL-12).It starts with the report of a study that uncovered important racial and socioeconomic disparities experienced by patients with glioblastoma treated in Alabama. Notable results also include the unexpected finding of increased survival in African American patients with glioblastoma even after controlling for factors associated with survival and socioeconomic disparities. The implications of …

Neighborhood Disadvantage, Sleep Quality, And Shift Work: The Reasons For Geographic And Racial Differences In Stroke (Regards) Study, Rebecca Williams

All ETDs from UAB

The first study used data (n=14,609) from the REasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in Stroke (REGARDS) to test the associations among Area Deprivation Index (ADI) and self-reported total sleep time (TST), sleep efficiency (SE), and number of restless nights within the last week. The second study (n=12,496) tested the associations among ADI, shift work status, and restlessness.Regression models were fit to examine associations between ADI and SE or TST or restlessness, as well as assess the relation between ADI and SE in clinically meaningful categories. Moderation analyses indicated whether sex or race impact the association between ADI and sleep. …

The Effects Of Venture Capital Network Centrality On Earnings Management And Profitability Of Portfolio Company: Evidence From The U.S. Market, Yosavee Niranvichaiya, Sorasart Sukcharoensin

DLSU Business & Economics Review

Based on a sample of 788 U.S. venture capital-backed IPO companies from 2006 to 2015, this research evaluates the impact of network centrality, venture capital (VC), and earnings management on the future profitability of VC-backed portfolio companies. The results suggest that companies backed by VCs with higher network centrality or that are “more centralized” are likely to have better future profitability after an IPO, even with the use of accrual-based earnings management.

Promoting Student Success In The Flipped Online Classroom: Learning And Accountability Through Homework Strategies, Melisa P. Kaye, Brian K. Kim

Journal of Occupational Therapy Education

As online and hybrid classes have become increasingly more prevalent in higher education, the flipped classroom structure has emerged as a viable, evidence-based, option for healthcare programs. In a flipped classroom, students view pre-recorded video lectures and complete reading assignments before class, and synchronous class time can then be used for active learning activities. Class sessions offer opportunities for group work, review of complex content, and access to instructor assistance with assignments. To effectively implement a flipped classroom approach, students must prepare prior to class time. One method for encouraging student accountability is to assign preparatory homework. This experimental study …

Parent Perceptions Of Post-Secondary Programming Completed By Their Adult Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Christopher Ramos, Katherine Wheeler, Jennifer Hamrick, Alexis Favela, Katelyn Pennington, Anthonia Prince

Journal of Human Services: Training, Research, and Practice

Texas Tech University's Burkhart Center for Autism Education and Research works with communities & families in the greater West Texas area to provide supports and services to individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder with a primary focus on building independent living and vocational skills in a post-secondary environment. In this study, parents of individuals with ASD who had completed the Burkhart Center’s Transition Academy completed an online survey. Parents identified areas in which they were satisfied with their child’s post-secondary experience as well as dissatisfaction, and of additional need. The findings of this current study may provide critical information to post-secondary …

Examining The U.S. Disaster Management Program: A Case Study Of The U.S. Virgin Islands Hurricanes Irma And Maria Evacuation, Victoria F. Vachon

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractWhether from natural or human causes, every global community is at risk for overwhelming, destabilizing incidents. Hurricanes Irma and Maria devastated the U.S. Virgin Islands in late August and early September 2017, necessitating the urgent evacuation of hemodialysis patients over 1000 miles to the U.S. mainland. Because the damage and response to the U.S. territory were unprecedented, the public health implications of the government’s strategies on the evacuated population subset were unexplored. However, available information suggested that some evacuees sustained avoidable harm while in the protracted care and custody of the government. This qualitative case study, conceptually framed by Bronfenbrenner’s …

Identity Negotiations Of A Mexican Transnational In The Rio Grande Valley: Crossing The Border Daily, Xiaodi Zhou, David Martinez-Prieto

Bilingual and Literacy Studies Faculty Publications

This narrative case study examines the cultural affiliations of one transnational US-born Mexican American college student, and her various intersecting veins of identity. The aim was to capture the bordered existence in the many criteria of her being. Her linguistic identity, pop culture identity, spiritual identity, as well as her general cultural affiliations are examined as intersecting rays of influence. Utilizing Anzaldúa’s (2012) bordered identity as theoretical grounding for her partitioned selves, along with Bakhtin’s (1986) notion of cultural and linguistic dialogue, we analyzed the complexities in this one bicultural, bilingual young woman venturing into adulthood. This study sheds light …

Agricultural Extension Services And Household Food Security Of Women Rice Farmers In The Ayeyarwady Region Of Myanmar, Yi Mon Thu, Rowena Dt. Baconguis, Myra E. David, Merlyne M. Paunlagui, Pompe C. Sta. Cruz

Journal of Public Affairs and Development

The study aimed to analyze women's households' farming practices towards household food security, particularly in six villages of the Ayeyarwady region. Data were collected from 126 randomized respondents. Findings show that the respondents are respondents who had a mean age of 45 years, married, natives of the study sites, and have attended primary education with an average of four family members. The government is the primary agency that provides training programs, mostly in rice production. They have access to extension worker visitation in which the most common topic discussed is pest management. Less than a fourth of the respondents are …

Neighborhood Ecological Models Of Alcohol Outlet Density And Male–On–Female Domestic Violence: Accounting For Adjacent Place And Neighborhood Characteristics, Thomas H. Johnson, Aleksandra J. Snowden

Social and Cultural Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

Alcohol availability is a consistent predictor of domestic violence, including intimate partner violence. Less is known about the effects of alcohol availability in neighboring units of analysis on domestic violence. This study examined whether alcohol outlet density in Milwaukee, Wisconsin is associated with Male-on-Female domestic violence (MFDV). Using block groups as the unit of analysis (N = 571), spatial regression models were estimated to model the relationship between the density of total, on-premise, and off-premise alcohol outlets on MFDV, while accounting for the spatial spillover effect (i.e., alcohol availability and neighborhood characteristics in focal and surrounding block groups). At …

Beyond Abstractionism: Notes On Conjunctural State Theory, Michael A. Mccarthy

Social and Cultural Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

No abstract provided.

State Constitutional Law: Standing To Litigate Public Rights In Georgia Courts, Randy Beck

Scholarly Works

State courts interpreting state constitutions face the recurring issue of how much weight to afford Supreme Court of the United States precedent addressing comparable questions under the United States Constitution. At one end of the spectrum, many state courts routinely engage in what federal Judge Jeffrey Sutton calls “lockstepping,” importing federal doctrine wholesale into state decisional law. For a court engaged in lockstepping, concepts like freedom of speech or equal protection of the laws under a state constitution mean whatever the U.S. Supreme Court interprets them to mean under the federal Constitution, even if the state provision differs in potentially …

Rights-Based Sanctions Procedures, Desiree Leclercq

Scholarly Works

Federal agencies are increasingly interpreting international labor rights and imposing a wide array of economic and financial penalties, or “rights-based sanctions,” under various laws and regulations. Congress recently vested the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) with authority to impose targeted rights-based sanctions on foreign factories. USTR has begun administering its new authority with vigor. Policymakers and rights advocates hope that USTR’s enforcement activities will strengthen the protection of workers abroad.

Hidden from view, and thus largely overlooked, are the exclusory procedures that agencies follow when they administer rights-based sanctions. The Treasury Department’s Office of Financial Asset Control …

The Right To Migrate, Matthew J. Lindsay

Lewis & Clark Law Review

Since the late-19th century, the Supreme Court has insisted that the preservation of national sovereignty requires a constitutional chasm between immigration law and ordinary law. If the Court is to bridge that chasm, it must reimagine the longstanding premise of the federal immigration power that the presence of noncitizens in U.S. territory menaces the nation’s sovereignty and security. This Article contributes to that reimagining by chronicling a compelling alternative worldview with a venerable historical pedigree—that of a quintessentially American right to migrate.

During the Founding Era, American statesmen described the impoverished subjects of Europe’s monarchies as protagonists in an unfolding …

Abortion Localism And Preemption In A Post-Roe Era, Kaitlin Ainsworth Caruso

Lewis & Clark Law Review

In Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the U.S. Supreme Court eliminated federal constitutional protections for abortion. Practically, a person’s access to abortion has long depended on where they live and where they can travel; that disparity is far worse now. In light of Dobbs, some states decisively changed their laws, often decimating abortion access. In other states, however, the law remains unclear; advocates are furiously lobbying and litigating to redefine their states’ standards. Amid this upheaval, one element of the new abortion landscape is underappreciated: how localities impact abortion access.

For decades, local governments have influenced access to abortion …

Regulating History, Sara C. Bronin, Leslie R. Irwin

GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

America’s local historic commissions collectively wield tremendous influence over millions of privately-owned parcels of land. By reviewing rehab proposals, blocking demolitions, and mandating property maintenance, these commissions have helped to protect many of America’s most beloved neighborhoods. They fill a vacuum left by federal and state governments, which have declined to offer robust legal protections to private historic sites. Litigation challenging local historic decisions and press vilifying commissions for their alleged elitism, anti-environmental decisions, and general obstruction of progress have put preservation in the contemporary crosshairs. While we align with those who believe that clear-thinking commissions can successfully mediate between …

This Is Who I Am: Identity Development And Importance Among Diverse Youth From Lgbtq+ Parent Families, Madison T. Diomede

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Although the literature on identity and related constructs among adolescents, emerging adults, and diverse populations is growing, little research has investigated identity among adolescents and emerging adults specifically in the context of LGBTQ+ parent families. The present study seeks to fill this gap in the literature by qualitatively investigating identity development and importance among diverse youth with LGBTQ+ parents. Participants are 51 youth (ages 12-25 years) with at least one LGBTQ+ parent. Trained personnel conducted remote, audio-recorded, semi-structured interviews from December 2018-February 2020. Interviews included questions about participants’ individual identities and conversations they have had with their parents about those …