Digital Commons Network^™

Why Tennessee’S Elvis Act Is The King Of Artificial Intelligence Protections, Sarah L. Fowler Senior Deputy General Counsel, John D. Fowler Founding Partner

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

Artificial intelligence (AI) is evolving and advancing quickly. As AI advances, it presents novel legal issues for individuals and industries alike. For example, AI can now mimic the voices of famous musicians so well that it can be almost impossible for listeners to discern whether the vocals are from those musicians or generated with AI. Yet under the current legal framework, new works that mimic a famous artist’s voice can be created and distributed by anyone without the consent of the musician and without any legal repercussions.

Fortunately, lawmakers are proposing legislation to protect against the unauthorized use of another’s …

Formulation And Characterization Of Quetiapine Fumarate Floating Bioadhesive Tablets, Ajay Reddy Kolipaka

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Quetiapine fumarate (QF) is an antipsychotic drug, and it has a plasma half-life of 6 hours. The chemical structure of QF has nitrogen groups making it highly soluble in acidic pH and slightly soluble in alkaline pH. This study aimed to develop the QF gastroretentive tablets by TSMG technology comprising floating and mucoadhesive approach by using different viscosity grades of HPMC to improve absorption by prolonging its gastric residence time. The floating tablets were prepared using the Twin screw melt granulation (TSMG) technology, and the impact of polymer concentration and viscosity grades of HPMC on the floating ability and drug …

Land For Whom? Diversity, Land Trusts, And Farmers And Gardeners From Marginalized Backgrounds In New England, U.S., Julie C. Keller, Blake Harrison, Corey Lang

Environmental and Natural Resource Economics Faculty Publications

Land trusts in the U.S. play an important role in preventing the loss of farmland to development. Farmers seeking affordable land may benefit from these conservation efforts. Yet the distribution of these benefits across farmer groups is unclear. This study asks: To what extent are land trusts meeting the needs of farmers and gardeners from marginalized backgrounds? Interviews with land trust staff and focus groups with marginalized farmers and gardeners in New England, USA reveal discrepancies in how diversity and land access are discussed. Access to adequate, affordable land was a serious concern among farmers and gardeners, yet few land …

Beyond Nil, William W. Berry, Iii

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

The name, image, and likeness (NIL) changes and shifting landscape obscure more existential threats to the student-athlete model on the horizon. The television money that Power Five conference teams receive still comprises much of the budget of athletic departments. The football and basketball players—-the revenue sport athletes-—may have a claim to a greater share of this revenue.

Some athletes argue that they are employees of their universities, which would entitle them not only to additional benefits but also to other tools, such as collective bargaining. All of these advantages could make universities responsible for increasing the amount of remuneration available …

Tackling Bias In Sport: Recognizing The Impact Of Identities, Meg Hancock --Assoc. Prof.

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

Studies suggest participation in organized sports--from childhood to adulthood--promotes positive physical, social, emotional, and intellectual benefits that impact individuals and their communities over a lifetime. Sports participation in early childhood and adolescence also leads to higher self-esteem, greater wage-earning potential, lower health costs, reduced chronic disease, and lower levels of depression. In adulthood, participating in sports provides social connection, personal enjoyment, and improved health. In US society, sports are often viewed as a popular, viable, and sustainable avenue for social mobility. While the benefits of sports participation are unequivocal, the visibility and influence of star athletes, along with the way …

United States Policies Related To Military-Connected Domestic Abuse: A Review And Analysis, Mary C. Highfill

Social Work Dissertations - Archive

This dissertation is comprised of three papers on United States Military policies related to domestic violence and abuse. The Department of Defense recognizes domestic abuse as a serious problem that interferes with mission readiness and causes harm to individuals. Significant work has explored antecedents of abuse, rehabilitation programs for abusive Service Members, and the experiences of uniformed survivors. However, relatively few empirical studies have investigated the policies that circumscribe domestic abuse and violence and the military’s response thereto.

The first article is a mapping review that synthesizes the peer-reviewed and gray literature related to U.S. Military policies related to domestic …

Identifying Fact-Checks Helpful For Vetting Factual Claims, Theodora Toutountzi

Computer Science and Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Recent efforts to combat misinformation have increasingly focused on automating the fact-checking process. For fact-checking systems to be automated, they need to recognize claims worth checking, match them with previously fact-checked claims, and determine their truthfulness. We refer to the task of matching unvetted claims with previously fact-checked claims as claim-matching. To be precise, the task is defined as follows: given a factual claim, identifying the fact-checks from a repository that could be helpful, or partially helpful, for vetting the given claim. A solution to this task is useful in practice since claimants often repeat the same claims even if …

Animal Adoption Experiences In Hong Kong, Suet Ying, Coco Cheung

Bachelor of Social Sciences – Senior Theses

This study explores how the different aspects and variables will affect the experiences of animal adoption. Animal adoption is the process of adopting strays or abandoned animals, which is also an alternative to obtaining pets. The research provides a theoretical framework to further understand the dynamics of animal adoption in various dimensions, such as the drivers of animal adoption, the role of animal adoption organizations, and the normative expectations of animal adopters. This research attempts to empirically fill this topic's research gap to explain the relationship between the variables and adoption experiences. In this study, the adoption experiences will be …

An Emerging War? Reviewing The Security Triangulation Between The Philippines, China And The United States Over The South China Sea Dispute, Kai Shun Chui

Bachelor of Social Sciences – Senior Theses

What factors explain the increasingly confrontational posture between Beijing and Manila since 2022? To what extent will the geopolitical tension transcend into a great-power hot war? This study aims to address these questions through a suggested framework involving the lens of structural, misperception and domestic theories to account for the factors contributing to the spiral of crisis. While security assessments of involved states are analysed on a case-by-case basis, the research findings suggest that the ongoing spiral of crisis largely adheres to the logic of security dilemma substantiated by structural and domestic factors. Offering a timely analysis regarding Manila's repivot …

Sacred Discrimination: Latvian Lutheran Clergy Against Ordination Of Women, Ģirts Rozners

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

This paper examines the resistance of contemporary Latvian Lutheran clergy to the ordination of women, rooted in historical factors and theological conservatism. It discusses the impact of Latvia's tumultuous history on theological discourse, revealing how practical concerns and traditionalism influenced the decision against women's ordination. Through clergy interviews, it uncovers a range of arguments used to justify this stance, exposing elements of sexism and neoconservatism. The clergy's prioritization of community identity over societal progress is evident, as they align with hierarchical leadership and resist external influences. This study highlights the disconnect between theological tradition and modern ethics, illustrating how theology …

"We Don’T Need No Ordination": Analysis Of The Discourse On Women’S Ordination In Latvian Online Media From 1999 To 2022, Emīls Zavelis, Sofija Anna Kozlova

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

This paper analyzes the discourse on women's ordination in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia (ELCL) as represented in Latvian online media from 1999 to 2022. The study combines qualitative and quantitative methodologies to examine the argumentative strategies employed by different discourse producers. The findings reveal significant differences in the use of gender equality concepts and other argumentative patterns between those in favor and those against women's ordination. These differences can be attributed to the distinct sociocultural contexts and epistemic grounds of the ELCL and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia Worldwide (ELCLW). The paper highlights the need for a …

The Missing Blue In Adventism: A Gap In Discipleship And Mission, Petr Cincala

Journal of Adventist Mission Studies

This article comes from the perspective of a researcher, a practical theologian, and a missiologist. The title The Missing Blue refers to the idea that light consists of three colors (Green, Red, Blue), and because God is light, the analogy of light is relevant for those who believe in the Triune God. We are called to worship the Creator God (represented by the green color) as Ruler of all the universe, God the consuming fire (Deut 4:24; Heb 12:29). Jesus (represented by the red color) teaches us to come to God as our friend, our daddy (John 15:15; Mark 14:36; …

Design And Optimization Of High-Efficiency Coreless Pcb Stator Axial Flux Pm Machines With Minimal Eddy And Circulating Current Losses, Yaser Chulaee, Greg Heins, Ali Mohammadi, Mark Thiele, Dan M. Ionel, Ben Robinson

Electrical and Computer Engineering Graduate Research

This paper proposes a systematic multi-step design procedure for highly efficient printed circuit board (PCB) stator coreless axial flux permanent magnet (AFPM) machines with minimal eddy and circulating current losses. The process begins with initial sizing, providing specific coefficients based on experience with multiple design projects. It continues with the optimization of the machine envelope design using an evolutionary algorithm and computationally efficient 3D finite element analysis (FEA) models. The subsequent step focuses on the detailed design of a PCB stator, aiming to minimize eddy and circulating current losses. Several open circuit loss mitigation techniques are proposed based on analytical …

Design Optimization Of A Direct-Drive Wind Generator With A Reluctance Rotor And A Flux Intensifying Stator Using Different Pm Types, Ali Mohammadi, Oluwaseun A. Badewa, Yaser Chulaee, Donovin D. Lewis, Somasundaram Essakiappan, Madhav Manjrekar

Electrical and Computer Engineering Graduate Research

This paper presents a large-scale multi-objective design optimization for a direct-drive wind turbine generator concept that is based upon an experimentally validated computational model for a small-scale prototype motor of the same type. By integrating an outer reluctance-type rotor and a segmented stator with toroidally wound single-coil modules containing spoke-type PMs, the design optimization aims to minimize losses, active mass, and torque ripple while adhering to a power factor constraint. The AC windings and PMs are positioned in the stator and this concept enhances flux concentration, enabling the use of more affordable high energy non-rare-earth (special type) magnets. The exterior …

Large-Scale Design Optimization Of An Axial-Flux Vernier Machine With Dual Stator And Spoke Pm Rotor For Ev In-Wheel Traction, Ali Mohammadi, Yaser Chulaee, Aaron M. Cramer, Ion G. Boldea, Dan M. Ionel

Electrical and Computer Engineering Graduate Research

This paper presents the optimization study targeting a specific drive cycle for a MAGNUS-type axial-flux permanent magnet vernier machine (AFPMVM). The proposed MAGNUS machine has a novel design with a dual-stator configuration, where only one stator is wound, with a high-polarity spoke permanent magnet (PM) rotor. The machine topology has a 3D flux path, which necessitates the analysis of a large finite element (FE) model. However, due to the computational complexity and time required for such a large FE model, a new approach was developed. This approach involves a computationally efficient finite element analysis (CE-FEA) model combined with a single …

Tonisha Haendiges '12-Christina "Mobile" Burrell '11, Tonisha Haendiges, Christina Burrell

Alumni Oral History Project

No abstract provided.

A Social History Of Opioids’ Crimedical Cycle, Jerel M. Ezell, Alex Rains, Babatunde Patrick Ajayi, Kyle Miller, Erin Augustine, Dawn Goddard-Eckrich, Elizabeth N. Kinnard, Michelle R. Lofwall

Behavioral Science Faculty Publications

Historically, public and political discourse around people who nonmedically use opioids has largely been rendered via a deficits-oriented lens, presenting this population as weak, disinterested, and deviant,and thus undesirable and ill-positioned for wellness and communal integration. These narratives, and subsequent policies used to engage people who use opioids, are intermittently formed and disrupted by geopolitical changes, as public and institutional attitudes, often driven by racial and class-related considerations, shift. As part of what we term the crimedical cycle, a population’s behaviors fluctuate between periods of medicalization and criminalization. Strengths-based theory, an offshoot of ‘positive psychology’ that helps contextualize the crimedical …

Rhetoric On Climate Change And The Effects On Public Perceptions, Hailey Mina Rose Dossey

Undergraduate Scholarship

One of the extraordinary challenges humans are facing today is climate change and over the past two decades, the majority of the world has moved from questioning its legitimacy to accepting it as fact. With most people having accepted climate change as a reality, the goal of climate communication has shifted from spreading awareness to motivating audiences to take action. Through this analytical discussion, we will look into effective and ineffective methods of rhetoric as it can help guide us to a better understanding of why certain rhetoric that has previously been successful in other fields may not be the …

The Online Education Landscape, Digital Tools, And Covid-19, Rosetta S. Burk

Undergraduate Scholarship

The 2020 COVID-19 pandemic has been the ultimate stress test for communication technologies, online learning methods, digital pedagogies, students and educators as the world faced school closures and emergency online learning situations during the pandemic lockdowns. There has been an influx in communication tools, digital paradigms, and teaching methodologies in addition to relying on existing digital tools and methods to continue students' education while unable to meet in person. The level of remote learning and digital movement is unprecedented and the results have been varied and illuminating. Research has been conducted on student attitudes in the immediate aftermath of the …

Pulling Back The Redwood Curtain: The Chinese Experience In Humboldt In The Nineteenth And Twentieth Centuries, Christopher J. Chu

Undergraduate Scholarship

Chinese immigrants were integral to many industries of early California. In Humboldt, they worked in industries such as logging, fishing, and railroads, and provided essential services, such as farming, gathering, or laundry, to the local economy. Chinese immigrants in Humboldt County during the late 19th and early 20th centuries faced systemic discrimination that became a defining feature of the region's identity. State legislation, including the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, along with national economic instability, particularly the Long Depression (1873–1896) and xenophobic policies in California influenced legislation and attitudes in Humboldt County. These forces combined with long-held local prejudices and …

Artists’ Displacement And Rights: Citizenship, Care And Advocacy In The Networked Arts Sector In Europe, Mary Ann Devlieg

Doctoral

This thesis is situated at the intersection of arts, human rights and migration policies and practices. Contextualising five of my previous publications, the thesis is a critical reflection on my transectoral work as an advocate for the rights, recognition and professional development support of persecuted artists relocated to European Union countries for safety. Focusing on the decade 2009-2019, with a coda regarding significant events in 2023, the thesis exposes observed disconnects between a European cultural policy discourse stressing diversity and inclusion and the realities encountered by artists at risk seeking sanctuary. The thesis includes two chapters, an introduction and a …

Reclaiming Fantasy: The Female Protagonist In Works Of Visual Art, Literature And Film, Siobhán O'Connor

Theses

‘Reclaiming Fantasy: The Female Protagonist in Works of Visual Art, Literature and Film’ charts representations of the female protagonist through the media in which the archetype is most prominent. From fairy tales to the slasher film, the female protagonist’s representation has been consistent with narratives that pertain to patriarchal constructions of gender. This is particularly true of genres that work on a level of ‘suspension of disbelief’, such as fantasy. This thesis presents findings on the reclamation of the female protagonist by female voices using a multidisciplinary approach, combining feminist theory, literary criticism, and visual art studies. From the 17th …

Differences In Student-Ai Interaction Process On A Drawing Task: Focusing On Students' Attitude Towards Ai And The Level Of Drawing Skills, Jinhee Kim, Yoonhee Ham, Sang-Soog Lee

STEMPS Faculty Publications

Recent advances and applications of artificial intelligence (AI) have increased the opportunities for students to interact with AI in their learning tasks. Although various fields of scholarly research have investigated human-AI collaboration, the underlying processes of how students collaborate with AI in a student-AI teaming scenario have been scarcely investigated. To develop effective AI applications in education, it is necessary to understand differences in the student-AI interaction (SAI) process depending on students' characteristics. The present study attempts to fill this gap by exploring the differences in the SAI process amongst students with varying drawing proficiencies and attitudes towards AI in …

Education Out Loud Case Study: School For Life, Alexander Towne, Sladana Krstic, Jolanda Butler

International Education Research

Children living in remote rural parts of Ghana experience inequality in basic education, in terms of both access and outcomes. This issue is particularly acute in the north of the country and for girls. For example, 30 percent of children in the north have no school nearby and 20 percent will never enroll. Furthermore, transparency and accountability within Ghana’s education system is weak. Generally, information is not disseminated in a way that is accessible to most citizens (for example it is not produced in a local language), which means they are denied the opportunity to understand and engage with the …

Education Out Loud Case Study: Iid, Alexander Towne, Sladana Krstic, Miriam Linder

International Education Research

The education system in Bangladesh has undergone significant change since the country’s independence from Pakistan in 1971. In 1973 the community-sponsored school system, in which communities felt a moral obligation to take an active role in schools, was transformed into a centralised national system. This caused a shift in the sense of ownership of the education system and a disconnect between community and school. This in turn led to the development of a system, which lacks accountability and community monitoring, and has left the system vulnerable to shocks that disproportionately affect already disadvantaged students. Nevertheless, there have been some notable …

The Effects Of Affiliation, Proximity To Suicide, And Religiosity On Suicide Acceptance, Lindsey M. Gack

Master's Theses or Doctor of Nursing Practice

As suicide becomes increasingly more prominent in the lives of people, research is being conducted to investigate causes, prevention, and even opinions on the topic. The impact of religious affiliation and religiosity on people’s acceptance of suicide was investigated in the current study. This was examined by using The Religious Commitment Inventory-10 (RCI-10; Worthington et al., 2003), the Semantic Differential Scale Attitudes Towards Suicidal Behavior (SEDAS; Jenner & Niesing, 2000), and the Proximity to Suicide Scale (PSS; self-constructed). Results indicated that a higher religiosity score was correlated with a more understanding viewpoint of an attempted/committed suicide. Results also showed that …

Life Satisfaction In Motherhood: The Influence Of Mindfulness On Life Stressors, Shyann Schumacher, Shyann M. Schumacher

Master's Theses or Doctor of Nursing Practice

Motherhood can be a stressful and highly demanding role. With the challenges a mother faces, many factors can influence satisfaction a mother experiences in their life. Within the many roles mothers play throughout their lives, mindfulness is found to benefit both women and their children and positively influence mothers’ relationships with their children or partner. This study investigated the role of mindfulness within life satisfaction among mothers’ experiences by examining levels of social support, mother’s age, work-life balance, and socioeconomic status as predictors of life satisfaction when moderated by mindfulness. Participants were sampled through social media including Facebook and Instagram. …

Exploring Psychological Factors Behind Consideration Of Cosmetic Surgery Through The Lens Of Social Comparison Theory, Noriene Verma

Master's Theses or Doctor of Nursing Practice

Cosmetic surgery refers to an extreme form of appearance modification whose sole purpose is to improve the appearance of the chosen area. Despite psychological concerns associated with repeated perform of cosmetic surgery, rates of cosmetic procedures are likely to increase in the coming years (American Society of Plastic Surgeons, 2020) and it warrants the need to study the potential motivators that encourage someone to opt for such procedures. Motivators of cosmetic surgery explored in this study are social media usage and self-esteem through the lens of Social Comparison Theory. Social comparison theory can explain the mechanisms behind one’s desire to …

A Portfolio In Creative Writing, Cooper Golden

Theses

When I began writing my thesis project, it was difficult to figure out which stories I had written during my time at UNA would fit. Before, during, and even between semesters, I wrote several stories that might have been good selections, but as they weren’t school assignments, I couldn’t include them. However, making my project has allowed me to go back to three stories and not only revise but improve on what I had written. Something else that I’ve noticed in my project is how diverse the genres of my stories have been. For example, in two stories I focus …

Multitudes, Madison Otter

Master's Theses or Doctor of Nursing Practice

Identity is a fluid and layered experience enriched by contradictions, the power of interpersonal relationships, and continuous growth. Recognizing oneself as a blend of opposing traits—strong and tender, contemplative and restless—reveals that humanity is anything but black and white. With each passing day, we evolve, bringing new perspectives and insights with us. As Walt Whitman wrote, "[we] contain multitudes.''

Although no single artistic medium can fully capture this for me, using multiple modes of expression allows me to explore and approximate it. This realization was the origin of my thesis.

The process of creation itself, whether quick or deliberate, is …