Digital Commons Network^™

Social Media's Impact On Female Generation Alpha's Beauty Standards And Consumer Habits, Matisen O'Brien

Theses

This study examines how social media shapes beauty standards and consumer behaviors among female Generation Alpha (ages 7–13). As the first generation fully immersed in digital culture, these young girls face early exposure to influencer marketing, algorithmic promotion, and adult beauty practices, which influence their skincare routines and product preferences. The research highlights the decline of child-centered physical spaces, intensifying their engagement with digital platforms. Using a mixed-methods approach focused on a subgroup of female gymnasts, the study combines quantitative surveys and qualitative analysis to reveal how social media affects identity formation, consumer choices, and related mental health concerns. Results …

Frameworks Of Genius: Fresco, Labor, Scaffolding, And Patronage In The Making Of Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel Ceiling, Jackelyn Eileen Adkins

Theses

This thesis examines how the materiality of production and the patronage of Pope Julius II influenced the visual and conceptual outcome of Michelangelo’s ceiling frescoes in the Sistine Chapel. It argues the physical demands of the fresco medium, the architectural constraints of the chapel, and the material infrastructure, such as the pigments, scaffolding, and spatial dynamics related to the political, theological, and ideological imperatives of papal authority. The materials served as a symbolic extension of Pope Julius II’s ambitions, embedding his message directly into the frescoes. By foregrounding the complex web of labor and materials that supported the project, this …

Effects Of Juncus-Derived Biochar And Fertilizer Rate On Soil Properties, Sorghum Yield, And Greenhouse Gas Fluxes In Southern Texas, Damar David Patrick Wilson

All Theses

Biochar is a crucial soil amendment used in agriculture to enhance soil health, improve crop yields, and increase climate resilience, thereby promoting sustainable agriculture. Biochar produced from Juncus effusus plants can also be utilized to enhance soil health, increase water retention, and improve nutrient availability and beneficial microbial activity, thereby promoting better plant growth and stress management. This research was conducted at the Prairie View A&M University (PVAMU) research farm. It aimed to highlight how biochar produced from J. effusus, utilizing a circulator system that sequesters heavy metals from the water and then converts it to biochar, can be used, …

Evaluation Of Algal Biofertilizer To Enhance Soil Health, Carbon Sequestration, And Cotton Yield For Sustainable Agriculture, Sanjita Gurau

All Theses

The intensive use of synthetic fertilizers in cotton production has improved yields but has also contributed to soil degradation, nutrient imbalance, and greenhouse gas emissions. To promote sustainable nutrient management, this study evaluated the field-scale potential of algal biomass as a biofertilizer for enhancing soil health, carbon sequestration, and cotton yield in the southern U.S. agroecosystem conditions. A two-year experiment (2023-2024), was conducted at Prairie View A&M University’s research farm in Texas, utilizing a randomized complete block design. The first year (2023) established baseline data with four synthetic nitrogen fertilizer rates: Control (no fertilizer), Double recommended, Recommended, and Half recommended, …

Generalizing Threshold-Based Multiparty Computation To Ramp Schemes, Christian Tucker

All Theses

Secure multiparty computation (MPC) enables multiple participants to jointly compute functions over their private inputs without revealing them. Classical threshold based protocols, such as the BGW protocol, perform computations on scalar values using (k,n)-threshold secret sharing. While these protocols provide strong security guarantees, they become computationally expensive when applied to large matrices or multiple secret values. In this work, we investigate the use of ramp schemes, secret sharing schemes that encode sets of secrets with a trade-off between privacy and efficiency, to generalize BGW computations. We show that the linear operations performed on shares (k,n)-threshold schemes in BGW can be …

Mitral Annular Calcification In Diabetes: Valvular Interstitial Cells, Antioxidant Therapy, And Tissue Engineering Approaches, Raleigh J. Keenan

All Theses

Mitral annular calcification (MAC) is a chronic, progressive, and degenerative condition that impairs mitral valve function and increases the risk of cardiovascular disease. The mitral annulus is a saddle-shaped, fibrous structure that is primarily composed of collagen and elastin. The annulus also contains interspersed lipids that are involved in cellular metabolism, as well as inflammatory and osteogenic signaling. These lipids increase the annulus’ susceptibility to calcification, under conditions that increase mechanical stress (hypertension) and promote atherosclerosis (diabetes mellitus). These conditions intensify calcification by promoting the activation of valvular interstitial cells (VICs), increasing fibrosis, and inducing osteogenic differentiation. Although it is …

Optimizing Endothelial Cell Specific Polymersome-Based Atheroprotective Therapies, Ally C. Brawner

All Theses

Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease is the number one cause of death in the United States and the world. Every year, billions of dollars are spent in the US alone for direct treatments of this disease, especially on prescription medicines like statins. However, these medications have been unable to curtail global mortality rates, partially because they do not target the entirety of atherosclerotic pathophysiology. A key area of this pathophysiology is that atheroprone arteries typically include pro-inflammatory endothelial cells that exhibit decreased levels of apoAI-mediated cholesterol efflux and an increased release of adhesion molecules, such as VCAM-1. The objective of my project …

The Iron Pyramid: Expanding The Iron Triangle To Integrate Safety As A Fundamental Dimension Of Construction Success, Laura Cooley

All Theses

For more than fifty years, construction project success has been judged by staying on schedule, remaining within budget, and completing the planned scope of work—an approach commonly known as the “Iron Triangle” (Barnes, Ph.D., 2006). While these measures are important, they do not capture the full range of factors that determine whether a project truly succeeds.

This study introduces the “Iron Pyramid” (Cooley, 2025), a model that expands the traditional framework by adding a fourth dimension: safety. Safety is understood not simply as regulatory compliance or the absence of injuries, but as a holistic construct encompassing project culture, leadership practices, …

Analysis Of Hysteresis In Poly(3-Hexylthiophene) Based Organic Thin Film Transistors With And Without Interfacial Layers And Effects Of Ion Irradiation On Poly(3-Hexylthiophene) Transistors, Riya George

All Theses

In this study we are investigating and comparing the hysteresis observed in I-V characteristics of Poly(3-hexylthiophene -2, 5-diyl) (P3HT) Organic thin film transistors (OTFT) with and without interfacial layers. We are also investigating how electrical characteristics of P3HT OTFTs is affected by irradiation with Ar⁸⁺ ions.

Hysteresis is an undesired phenomenon that affects transistor reliability and performance. In this study on OTFTs, P3HT was used as the organic semiconductor, with silicon dioxide (SiO_₂) as the Gate dielectric. Two interfacial layers—graphene oxide (GO) and a copolymer, poly(oligo(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate–glycidyl methacrylate–lauryl methacrylate) (POGL)—were introduced between the semiconductor …

Exploring Augmented Reality Non-Driving-Related-Task Locations To Enhance Driver Situation Awareness In Conditionally Automated Vehicles, Tyler Riley

All Theses

With the approval of conditionally automated vehicles, or SAE Level 3 automated vehicles, drivers can now engage in non-driving related tasks (NDRTs) during automation. However, conditionally automated vehicles require drivers to resume vehicle control when the system prompts them, and the decreased situation awareness due to NDRT engagement may impact drivers’ takeover performance. This thesis investigates the prospective use of wearable augmented reality (AR) glasses by conditionally automated vehicle drivers to engage in visual NDRT. Specifically, this study examined how NDRT display location affects drivers’ situation awareness in a driving simulation experiment with 60 participants. Three NDRT display locations were …

Environmental Sanitation In Long-Term Care Facilities: A Focus On Regulations And Implementations, Ruwan Dissanayake Dissanayake Mudiyanselage

All Theses

Environmental sanitation is a fundamental component of infection prevention in long-term care facilities (LTCFs), where residents are at increased risk due to advanced age, underlying health conditions, and communal living arrangements. Despite its critical role, significant gaps remain in implementing environmental sanitation procedures and the regulatory frameworks that guide them.

This study combines two components: (1) an across-state regulatory review of environmental sanitation in LTCF regulations and (2) a cross-sectional survey assessing environmental sanitation characteristics of nursing homes (NHs) and assisted living facilities (ALFs) and Rural and Urban LTCF observation study in South Carolina (SC) . For the regulatory review …

Processing Self, Ethan B. Mckellar

All Theses

Processing Self is a body of sculptural and utilitarian ceramic work that explores the intersection of the materiality of clay with the expression of grief and vulnerability. In this work I utilize the process of building unstable ceramic vessels and the communal action of wood firing to translate the experiences of grief and care into physical forms. As I build, I manipulate the clay to its limits, allowing it to falter under its own weight, and display the breakage and damage. By committing to support each vessel through its creation, I make a promise to persevere, echoing the commitment I …

Data-Assimilation-Enabled Fast Convergence Of The Uzawa Scheme For Navier-Stokes Equations With Large Reynolds Numbers, Jessica C. Franklin

All Theses

This work studies efficient techniques utilized to solve the Navier-Stokes equations that model incompressible Newtonian flow in the setting where partial solution data is available. First, we analyze the Picard iteration and Picard with continuous data assimilation applied and test convergence. Then, we analyze the Arrow-Hurwicz (AH) and Uzawa iterative procedures and test convergence. Finally, we apply continuous data assimilation to Uzawa, and analytical and numerical results show that CDA improves Uzawa convergence for the NSE, similar to CDA-Picard but it is much more efficient.

Editable 4d Gaussian Splatting: Scalable And Consistent Video Editing Via Uv-Texture Decomposition, Shuai Lyu

All Theses

Dynamic 3D videos are now widely used in VR, AR, and telepresence, where users often want to change the style or appearance of objects such as clothing over a whole sequence. However, editing such dynamic 3D content is still hard, because appearance, geometry, and motion are tightly coupled, so even a simple color change must stay consistent in all views and at all time steps. Existing editing methods based on 4D Gaussian Splatting often work in a frame-by-frame way, which is slow and makes it difficult to keep temporal and multi-view consistency.

This thesis proposes Editable-4DGS, a representation-centric framework that …

Crafting Well-Being: Specialty Coffee As Leisure, Leah C. Dodge

All Theses

This thesis explores how individuals engage with specialty coffee as a leisure practice in Upstate South Carolina. Drawing on Flow Theory and Craft Consumption Theory, it examines how meaning is constructed through everyday interaction. Using semi-structured interviews with 15 self-identified enthusiasts in South Carolina, the study analyzes how participants describe their involvement with specialty coffee, reflect on its value, and situate it within local contexts. Findings suggest that specialty coffee encourages sustained engagement in which well- being is created through personal investment, community involvement, and awareness of global contexts. The research contributes to scholarly discourse by conceptualizing leisure as a …

Experimental Determination Of Modulus Of Rupture For Concrete Masonry Beams And Implications For The Tms 402/602 Code, Shreedhar K C

All Theses

Currently, the experimental database for Modulus of Rupture (MOR) of masonry beams is limited, and current provisions in TMS 402/602-22 use the MOR values from wallette tests. The primary goal of this research is to experimentally determine the parameters that influence MOR. The secondary goal of this work is to compare the MOR values from beam and bond wrench tests obtained in this study with each other as well as with values published in the literature. The standard ASTM E518 test was used for determining MOR values for beams, and a modified approach to ASTM C1072 that nullifies the eccentricity …

Locomotion And Balance Control In A Biped Robot With Continuum Legs And A Kangaroo-Inspired Tail, Gavin A. Platt

All Theses

This thesis work presents the design, testing, and validation of a continuum-legged biped robot equipped with a kangaroo inspired tail for enhanced stability and adaptability. Unlike traditional rigid link robots, this one expands on soft-legged robots and utilizes tendon-driven continuum robots to mimic octopus and kangaroo behavior for locomotion. The robot uses a hierarchical hybrid control framework to implement walking, obstacle avoidance, vaulting, and push recovery behaviors. To test the performance of the robot four sets of experiments were conducted to validate these systems and evaluate how they performed. The results demonstrate stable walking with rhythmic tail load transfer, effective …

Barriers To Modernizing Aviation Maintenance Technician Education To Meet Emerging Industry Needs, Durwa Chavan

All Theses

Modernizing aviation maintenance education is essential to keep pace with emerging technologies, including electric propulsion systems and advanced avionics. As aircraft systems become more digitized and interconnected, there is a growing demand for qualified technicians who can conduct advanced diagnostics and maintenance. However, training programs have not kept pace with these technological shifts, creating a gap between workforce preparation and industry needs.

Using a qualitative research approach, this study conducted semi-structured interviews with industry professionals, educators, and regulatory personnel to identify gaps in existing training programs and Airman Certification Standards (ACS). This study addresses the disconnect between current aviation maintenance …

Predicting Long-Term Creep Behavior Using Short-Term Stress Relaxation Data In Expanded Polyethylene Foam, Andrew M. Seelig

All Theses

Closed cell expanded polyethylene (EPE) foams are widely used for protective packaging due to their high energy absorption properties and recyclability. However, these foams can be subjected to sustained compressive stresses (13.78 - 36.20 kPa), depending on density and application, leading to time-dependent deformation (creep). Creep reduces cushioning performance, making its understanding critical for effective protective packaging. Two standards, ASTM D3575 and ASTM D2221, define methods for conducting compressive creep tests on foam materials, with test durations extending up to 1000 hours. Accelerated methods such as Time Temperature Superposition (TTS) and the Stepped Isostress Method (SSM) have been explored for …

Impact Of Rendering Wastewater Variability On Electrocoagulation - Electroflotation, Katie L. Hardison

All Theses

Rendering is a resource recovery technique commonly utilized to recover fats and proteins from unused animal parts discarded during meat processing and slaughter. Resource recovery involves converting waste products into valuable products. Rendering generates large volumes of heavily polluted wastewater. Pollutant concentrations can vary significantly, although rendering wastewater (RW) has extremely high concentrations of fats, oils, and greases (FOG). To remove pollutants, first chemicals called coagulants are added to RW to encourage pollutants to clump together to form flocs. The flocs are then floated to the surface and removed through the addition of air in a process called dissolved air …

An Attack-Centric Approach To Security, Privacy, And Legal Challenges In Virtual Healthcare, Suvineetha Herath

Masters Theses & Doctoral Dissertations

As the U.S. healthcare sector continues to evolve, the adoption of virtual care delivery systems has expanded rapidly. This digital transformation has intensified concerns regarding the security and privacy of Protected Health Information (PHI). To address these challenges, this study employed a sequential, exploratory mixed-methods approach to examine the evolving threat landscape and to develop an attack-centric threat model for virtual healthcare environments. In the first phase, a qualitative analysis of regulatory enforcement and legal effectiveness was conducted to examine compliance gaps, privacy risks, and legal consequences within virtual healthcare systems. Building on the qualitative findings, the second phase quantitatively …

Influence Of Produced Water Runoff On Surface Water: A Statistical Analysis Of Water Quality In Petronilla Creek, Joshua Sierra

Water Resources Science and Technology Theses and Graduate Research Reports (Archived)

This case study research investigates the potential influence of produced water (PW), a byproduct of oil and gas (O&G) activities, on surface water quality. The study involved two sites along Petronila creek, located in Nueces County, with historical oil and gas presence. Data from nearby monitoring stations containing various water quality parameters typically associated with produced water, including total dissolved solids (TDS), chloride (Cl), sulfate (SO4), and specific conductance was used to perform a statistical analysis of spatial and temporal trends. Spatial comparisons were made between both sites and upstream, tributary, and downstream roles to test for variances in water …

Evaluating Nutrient Uptake Efficiency Of Texas Native Plants In Simulated Constructed Wetland Systems, Angelica Canizalez

Water Resources Science and Technology Theses and Graduate Research Reports (Archived)

Nutrient enrichment from wastewater effluent and runoff is a major driver of eutrophication in freshwater systems, increasing the need for effective and ecologically beneficial treatment strategies. Constructed wetlands (CWs) offer a nature-based solution for reducing nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) while simultaneously supporting habitat and biodiversity. However, most CW research has focused on traditional species such as cattails and bulrushes, with limited quantitative data on the performance of Texas native plants. This study evaluated the nutrient uptake potential and stress tolerance of two Texas native species—buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis) and Maximilian sunflower (Helianthus maximiliani)—in simulated, recirculating wetland systems.

Impact Of Structured Internal Medicine Pharmacotherapy Education In Improving Pharmacist Readiness In Transitioning To An Academic Medical Center, Jude Pierre, Erika Dittmar, Heidi Clarke, Radhan B. Gopalani, Stephanie Palma

Nursing & Health Sciences Research Journal

Introduction: Baptist Hospital of Miami (BHM) is transitioning to an academic medical center by starting medical residency training in July 2025. As healthcare systems expand, pharmacists must ensure safe medication dispensing and provide real-time clinical decision support. To support this transition, a structured internal medicine pharmacotherapy curriculum was developed to refresh clinical knowledge and enhance confidence among experienced clinical pharmacists.

Methods: A single-site, Institutional Review Board-exempt, quality improvement project was conducted at BHM. Inclusion criteria included Clinical Pharmacists 2s (primarily decentralized pharmacists with ≥ 1 year of pharmacy experience at BHM) who completed a structured pharmacotherapy curriculum from January 2025 …

The Music & The Movement: Race, Rhythm, And Social Justice, Renee Nicole Allen -- Associate Professor Of Law

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

From Billie Holiday’s “Strange Fruit” to Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power” to J. Cole’s “Be Free,” music has played a vital role in energizing social justice movements and elevating the legal and social issues facing Black people. An examination into the legal, historical, and social contexts for the music created during ten key movements in Black history reveals the role of lyrics and rhythm. Through the lens of music, ten movements—Freedom, Lynching, the Great Migration, Civil Rights, Black Power, Black Feminism, Police Brutality, Mass Incarceration, Black Love, and Black Lives Matter—demonstrate that Black music is more than entertainment. It is …

An Assessment Of The Viva Callesj September 2025 Event In San José, Richard Kos, Adam Cohen

Mineta Transportation Institute

Viva CalleSJ is an open-streets initiative where several miles of the City of San José’s streets are closed to vehicular traffic, allowing residents to walk, bike, scooter, and skate freely. This report evaluates the Viva CalleSJ event held in San José on September 7, 2025, which attracted more than 150,000 participants. Using a mixed-methods approach, this evaluation examines aspects such as attendance, activities, modal access, and economic impacts, utilizing data from participant surveys (in English, Spanish, and Vietnamese), interviews, and observational analysis. The findings indicate that the Viva CalleSJ September 2025 event was largely successful in achieving its objectives, including …

Bridging The Gap Between Counselor Education And Trauma Treatment In Practice: A Phenomenology Of Trauma-Specialized Counselors, Ariel Hutcheon

Counseling & Human Services Theses & Dissertations

Trauma impacts the life experiences of a sizable portion of the population. Given that so many clients bring trauma into counseling, even when not the presenting issue, knowledge of trauma’s impact and proficiency with trauma treatment are essential topics in counselor education. This study gave voice to counselors in the field to share what they have found effective from working with clients with trauma. The researcher used a phenomenological approach and interviewed six self-identified trauma-specialized counselors who have practiced for five years or longer. The data was explicated, and four major themes were identified. The first theme was Inadequate Training: …

Examining The Perceptions Of Economics And Personal Finance Teachers' Preparedness To Teach Financial Literacy, Tasha L. Wearren

Educational Leadership & Workforce Development Theses & Dissertations

Financial literacy has become an important topic in our society. Despite an increased focus in financial literacy education, there is limited research assessing teachers’ ability to teach financial literacy by examining their endorsement area. According to Soroko (2021), research is limited regarding teachers’ beliefs and practices as it relates to financial literacy. As O’Neill and Hensley (2016) indicated, “Teachers cannot teach personal finance well if they do not understand it themselves and/or cannot engage their students” (p. 639). This qualitative multiple case study examined how Economics and Personal Finance teachers perceive their preparedness to teach financial literacy with different endorsements. …

A Kinematic, Data-Parameterized Approach To Constrain Subducted Seafloor During The Emplacement Of Shatsky Rise, Alexzandrya Katrina Shotorban

OES Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates ridge spreading rates and plate boundary geometry in interactions between large igneous provinces and mid ocean ridges, and their role in the kinematics of Shatsky Rise, an undersea volcanic plateau in the western Pacific Ocean that is roughly the size of the state of California. Shatsky Rise formed at a ridge-ridge-ridge (RRR) triple junction (TJ) (Hilde et al., 1976; Sager et al., 1988), at the intersection of the Pacific-Izanagi, Pacific-Farallon, and Izanagi-Farallon ridges, beginning at approximately 147 Ma. Investigations into Shatsky Rise’s formation are limited by the fact that two-thirds of the seafloor data has subducted with …

Component Model Development Of Heat Exchangers, Expanders, And Control Valves For Autonomous Cryogenics Plant Cool-Down, William Harris Buhrig Iv

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

The traditional method of cryogenic plant cool-down involves having continuous on-call staff to head into the office at any time to modify the existing multi-layered PID control systems if the on-call staff member detects a significant deviation from the cool-down plan. This thesis aims to outline an effective method for modeling the structure of systems with performance characteristics that deviate from design requirements and from ideal inlet-outlet correspondence, enabling the adjustment and modification of existing control structures across all Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility (JLab) cryogenic refrigeration plants. Analytical Modeling and Gaussian Process Regression (GPR) are applied to model the …