Digital Commons Network^™

Two Cheers For Cox V. Sony, James Gibson

Law Faculty Publications

There’s a lot to dislike about the Supreme Court’s opinion in Cox Communications, Inc. v. Sony Music Entertainment. It mischaracterizes, oversimplifies, and ignores precedent. It fails to engage with important arguments. It mangles the meaning of “intent.” And it introduces uncertainty into the workings of secondary liability across other intellectual property regimes.

For these reasons, the decision doesn’t deserve three cheers. But it deserves two. Because in two important ways, the Supreme Court has succeeded. First, the opinion fixes some misguided appellate court holdings by articulating a relatively workable standard for future copyright cases involving secondary liability. Second, despite …

Lethal Injection Then And Now: A Topsy-Turvy Moment For The Abolition Movement, Corinna Barrett Lain

Law Faculty Publications

At first glance, how states execute prisoners is an entirely unattractive question for those who think that states shouldnot be executing prisoners at all. Indeed, one might reasonably take the position that discussions about how states execute presume that executions can be carried out in ways that are acceptable and unacceptable, which is antitheticalto the very core of the abolitionist position. As the renowned Henry Schwarzschild-longtime director of the ACLU's Capital Punishment Project and founder of the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty-wrote in 1980, "Theworst sin of all is to do well that which should not be done …

Dismantling The Whiteness Of Legal Education, Doron Samuel-Siegel

Law Faculty Publications

Whiteness is not merely a racial description. Whiteness operates as allegiance to structural racism. The quiet engine of racial hierarchy, whiteness pervades and shapes traditional legal education, rendering legal pedagogy a structurally racist enterprise. Legal education not only reproduces the racism embedded in the law and legal profession, but also obscures the ways legal doctrine, professional norms, and pedagogical practices normalize, protect, and make invisible the advantages that accrue to whiteness itself. In doing so, itproduces lawyers ill-equipped to dismantle structural injustice.

This Article breaks new ground in the scholarship on legal pedagogy by defining whiteness as it operates within …

Masculine Devotion And Moral Decay: The Paradox Of Chivalry In Malory's Le Morte Darthur, Julia Annunziato

Graduate Studies Theses and Dissertations 2026

This thesis investigates how, within Sir Thomas Malory’s Le Morte Darthur, the concept of chivalry as a literary construct is misunderstood and misrepresented by the knights who attempt to uphold it. Through a close reading of Le Morte, this paper concludes that Malory presents chivalry not as a coherent moral code, but as a paradoxical system that both promotes and undermines the values it claims to uphold. While chivalry is typically meant to emphasize honor, loyalty, and spiritual devotion, Malory’s narrative reveals how these ideals are compromised by structures of masculine competition, performative identity, homosocial desire, and corrupted …

Lucha Libre: Legends Of The Mask, Anthony J. Aguilar

Graduate Studies Theses and Dissertations 2026

Lucha libre, also known as Mexican wrestling, is a cultural phenomenon whose history dates to 1933. Every wrestling match pits flamboyantly costumed and masked wrestlers (luchadores), classified as either the good guys (técnicos) or the bad guys (rudos), against each other in choreographed and dramatized battles. Although lucha libre is often seen as campy or “low brow” due to its exaggerated, theatrical style, this perception overlooks the deeper cultural significance and narrative potential inherent in the form. This thesis will explore the cultural evolution of lucha libre as a highly interactive themed ride attraction. By integrating guest participation through custom …

Enhancing The Immersive Experience Through The Diversification Of Operational Costuming, Emma Nevitt

Graduate Studies Theses and Dissertations 2026

This thesis will be a comparative creative project that analyzes current operational wardrobe options within immersive lands, utilizing case studies and applied research, a neutral proposed immersive land will be created with operational costuming options that provides variety to the operational wardrobe that will enhance the immersive guest experience by creating a more compelling environment through wardrobe diversity. This will be achieved through a kit-of-parts approach where staffing will have a small variety of tops, bottoms, headwear, outerwear, and accessories to create a unique look to their own wardrobe while providing narrative insight. Each piece will be designed specifically for …

Un Lugar A Donde No Puedo Volver: Perteneciendo En La Distancia, Alberto J. Alonso

Graduate Studies Theses and Dissertations 2026

“A Place I Cannot Return To: Distance and Belonging” investigates how home is not limited to a fixed place, but instead a reconstruction sustained through memory and longing, which focuses on personal experiences of being away from Puerto Rico. I contribute to this broader dialogue by offering a deeply personal perspective shaped by the complexities of cultural belonging. Through photography, collage, and painting, my art practice reconstructs fragmented visual narratives of lived experience to explore homesickness, nostalgia, and displacement, examining how personal and shared histories become anchors to what continually slips away. Although I can physically return to Puerto Rico, …

Critical Analysis Of Legal Education: Faculty Perspectives Of Law School's Role In Producing Practice-Ready Graduates, Sophia M. Akel

Graduate Studies Theses and Dissertations 2026

Legal education has long been the subject of harsh, widespread criticism due to concerns about its ability to adequately prepare students for legal practice. Newer attorneys have reported feeling incapable of performing even the most basic functions of their job after graduation from law school (Merritt & Cornett, 2020). Despite this troubling reality, law schools largely continue to function as they always have (Cramton, 1981). To gain insight directly from important figures in legal academia, this study examined law faculty perceptions on legal education’s role in producing practice-ready graduates. A mixed-methods survey design incorporating both quantitative descriptive and qualitative elements …

Investigating The Association Between Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (Pcos) And Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension (Iih): A Cross-Sectional Analysis, Savannah L. Adams

Graduate Studies Theses and Dissertations 2026

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH) are chronic conditions that disproportionately affect women of reproductive age and share several metabolic risk factors, including obesity, insulin resistance, and hormonal dysregulation. Despite growing clinical interest in a potential relationship between these conditions, limited research has examined awareness, knowledge, symptom presentation, and barriers to healthcare among young adult populations. The purpose of this study was to investigate awareness, knowledge, perceived healthcare barriers, and potential associations between PCOS and IIH among college-aged individuals. A cross-sectional survey was administered to students aged 18-25 at the University of Central Florida through classroom recruitment …

'But George Floyd Wasn't A Saint': A Critical Discourse Analysis Pre And Post George Floyd, Raya Berkley-Jacobs

Graduate Studies Theses and Dissertations 2026

May 25, 2020, George Floyd died at the hands of former police officer Derek Chauvin after he placed his knee on George Floyd’s neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds. His death sparked outrage, protests, and calls for accountability, justice, and reform. This study addresses the impact of George Floyd’s death as a focusing event that created a policy window under which federal legislation was introduced as a response to his death. Drawing on Punctuated Equilibrium Theory and Social Construction Theory, the study utilizes a critical discourse analysis to test how the death of George Floyd impacted the amount and …

Exploring Governance And Government Policies Of Preparedness And Response To Flooding In Juneau, Alaska, Derreck Asiamah

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Flooding poses an escalating threat to human well-being, economic stability, and environmental resilience in climate-sensitive regions such as Juneau, Alaska, where the retreat of the Mendenhall Glacier has produced an actively expanding ice-dammed lake, Suicide Basin, capable of triggering an annual Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF). This thesis explores the governance and government policies shaping flood preparedness and response in Juneau, Alaska, with particular attention to GLOF risk and the August 2024 GLOF, one of the most destructive flood events in the city's history. Grounded in adaptive governance theory and political ecology, the study offers a multidimensional perspective on institutional …

Examining The Current And Potential Impacts Of Erosion, Flooding, And Permafrost Thaw On Small Businesses In The Lower Kuskokwim Basin, Alaska, Dela Yao Agbagba

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Climate change has intensified hazards such as flooding, erosion, and permafrost thaw in Arctic Communities, threatening small business buildings, disrupting operations, and reducing income. Small businesses are important to these communities because they provide essential goods and services and support local economic activity. Understanding their vulnerability and adaptation needs is therefore important for sustaining communities in the Lower Kuskokwim Basin, Alaska.

This study used GIS spatial analysis and content analysis as its two main methods, supported by a limited number of semi-structured interviews. A spatial database of 78 businesses across seven Alaska Native Communities was developed, and flood susceptibility was …

Holographic Sensors For The Detection Of Volatile Organic Compounds, Graceson Antony

Doctoral

Volatile organic compound (VOC) monitoring at parts-per-million (ppm) concentration levels is essential for occupational safety, indoor air quality, and regulatory compliance. Although holographic gas sensors have been widely investigated, most operate in reflection mode as qualitative visual indicators, with limited quantitative evaluation of sensing mechanisms and scarce systematic demonstrations of repeatable multi-cycle validation for VOCs at ppm concentrations. A physics-based optimisation framework for transmission-mode holographic gas sensors which can bridge this gap has remained largely undeveloped.

This thesis presents the development and optimisation of real-time transmission-mode volume phase transmission holographic grating (VPTHG) sensors for ppm-level VOC detection. A comprehensive theoretical …

Geographic Variation In Proteomic Responses To Ocean Acidification In A Cold-Water Coral (Balanophyllia Elegans), Keana A. Richmond

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

In the face of a rapidly changing climate, assessing organismal responses to future stressors in the context of current, natural exposure to stress could provide key insights to understanding marine ecosystem resilience. I used Balanophyllia elegans, a cold-water, solitary, azooxanthellate coral as a model to better understand how varying oceanographic conditions across its geographic range have shaped its ability to tolerate and potentially adapt to current and future ocean acidification conditions. I collected B. elegans individuals from four sites across 2,500km of their range and subjected them to two pH treatments to investigate site-specific protein expression in response to …

Navigating Liminality: Building Resources For And With Undocumented Students, Yaneyry Delfin Martinez

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Rooted in Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) and Liberation Sociology, this project outlines an institutional blueprint for the resources and support systems needed to address the lived realities of undocumented students at Cal Poly Humboldt (CPH). Conducted during the second Trump Administration amidst escalating hostility towards immigrants and attacks on DEI initiatives, this work documents both the structural conditions shaping undocumented students’ lives and the collective resistance that emerged in response. Furthermore, it examines how immigration policy, access to and restrictions on federal and state aid, geographic conditions, and on-campus barriers reproduce and maintain legal liminality within higher education. Grounded in …

Repairing Estranged Death: Care, Politics And Ecology In The Us Funeral Industry, Cecilia Catherine Rodriguez

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The industrialization of death practices in the US has separated humanity from natural cycles while centering white settler colonial norms that marginalize other cultural ways of caring for the dead. Through necropolitics, the contemporary death industry embodies capitalist values of commodification and a monopolization of care, separating death from community and its ecological cycles. Black and Indigenous feminist knowledges understand death as not a discrete event but instead as an ongoing process that shapes our relationships with both the human and more-than-human worlds. Engaging with feminist political ecologies, I extend a conversation about care and repair to contemporary death practices …

Decolonizing Restorative Justice: A Teaching Development Project, Lacy Felice Mitchell

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The coloniality of power serves as a central axis within the matrix of domination that characterizes global capitalist modernity, as Anibal Quijano famously argued. This power is rooted in particular ways of looking, seeing, and understanding social reality, anchored in Eurocentrism as an epistemological paradigm for the hegemonic discourse produced by the West against both internal and external categories of “other.” Such categories still inform the production of knowledge in educational settings. In this project, I engage in a critique of the coloniality of power to explore its implications and potential for critical pedagogical practice within the context of sociology …

Long-Term Relationships Between Tree Growth And Climate In The Trinity Alps Wilderness, Klamath Mountains, California, Usa, Emma R. Knepp

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The Trinity Alps Wilderness is a unique setting for evaluating late-Holocene climate variability because former glaciers occupied comparatively low elevations in a region influenced by both coastal and interior climate patterns. Tree-ring chronologies were developed from four conifer species—Shasta red fir (Abies magnifica var. shastensis), western white pine (Pinus monticola), Brewer’s spruce (Picea breweriana), and mountain hemlock (Tsuga mertensiana)—sampled at high elevations (1950 - 2300 m) near Emerald and Grizzly Lakes in the Trinity Alps Wilderness in northern California. The final chronologies included 12 Shasta red fir trees, 12 western white pine …

Species Boundaries Of The Rare Menzies’ Wallflower (Brassicaceae: Erysimum Menziesii), An Endemic Of The Northern California Coast, Cameron M. Jones

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Morphological similarity among geographically isolated populations can obscure deep evolutionary divergence, especially when convergent evolution under similar environmental conditions yields comparable phenotypes across independent lineages. Such cryptic diversity is likely underestimated in hotspots like the California Floristic Province (CFP), a global biodiversity hotspot, defined by its Mediterranean-like climate and encompassing most of California, southwestern Oregon, and northwest Baja California. The CFP is home to a disproportionate number of narrow endemics whose origins and evolutionary relationships remain poorly understood. Here, I investigate the evolutionary origins of Erysimum menziesii (Brassicaceae), a federally endangered California coastal dune endemic whose fragmented distribution has led …

Rethinking Belonging In First-Year Student Support: A Mixed-Methods Evaluation Of Eop/Sss Programing At Cal Poly Humboldt, Elizabeth Rose Silver

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

This mixed-methods project examines the role of the Educational Opportunity Program and Student Support Services (EOP/SSS) first-year orientation programs, particularly STEM Summer Bridge, in supporting feelings of belonging and persistence. While institutional efforts often frame student success through metrics such as retention and concepts like sense of belonging, this project interrogates how these are experienced and understood by students themselves. Quantitative analyses compared one-year persistence rates between STEM Summer Bridge participants and multiple comparison groups across three cohorts (2022–2024). Results showed no statistically significant differences in persistence; however, STEM Summer Bridge participants demonstrated persistence rates comparable to or slightly higher …

Neoliberalism And The Crimes Of The Powerful: Transforming The State During The First Trump Era (2017-2021), Charles Brandon Lonon

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

This thesis examines the way the American capitalist state transformed during Donald Trump’s first presidential term (2017-2021), especially focusing on neoliberal policy and the framework of the crimes of the powerful. This thesis aims to answer the question of how neoliberalism transformed the state under Donald Trump. Drawing on Nicos Poulantzas’ theory of authoritarian statism and Frank Pearce’s conception of crimes of the powerful, this thesis examines how the state becomes more authoritarian to protect capital accumulation and the capitalist class. The research shows that Trump weaponized authoritarian populist rhetoric that targeted women, immigrants, and vulnerable populations to build support …

Taking A Seat In The Circle: Decolonizing Gender Roles That Argue Against The Participation Of Feminine Bodies At The Big Drum, Juli Suzukawa

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The origins of the Big Drum can be traced back to the 1860s when Tail Feather Woman, a Dakota woman, had a vision of its creation as a tool of resistance. The Big Drum has since expanded and can now be seen at various Indigenous ceremonies and social events. However, there has been controversy regarding the participation of feminine and queer bodies. While reasons for this vary, it has also contributed to harm amongst Indigenous youths that have a more fluid stand on gender identity and may not conform to colonial “gender norms”. In this paper, I will explore how …

Assessing Coho Salmon (Oncorhynchus Kisutch) Distribution Using Traditional Sampling Methods In Conjunction With Edna On Trinity River Tributaries Within The Hoopa Tribal Boundaries, Ely D. Boone

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Detecting the presence of species using environmental DNA (eDNA) is a fast-growing field of study that shows much promise for population monitoring. In fisheries biology, eDNA is a potentially powerful tool compared to traditional fisheries monitoring techniques such as visual observation via snorkel surveys. When eDNA and traditional survey methods are employed in tandem, using the same spatial and temporal sampling design, eDNA often detects target species when traditional methods do not. In this study, instead of utilizing this paired study design, I implemented eDNA and snorkel surveys at different sampling scales with eDNA being collected at a single downstream …

Supporting Risky Outdoor Play Through Professional Development: A Quasi-Experimental Study Of Tk–6 Educators’ Attitudes, Justin Ross Burrill

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Children’s opportunities for active outdoor risky play have declined in many educational settings, despite evidence that manageable risk supports physical activity, self-regulation, confidence, resilience, and social participation. Educator attitudes and school culture may play an important role in determining whether children are offered developmentally appropriate opportunities for challenge, exploration, and autonomy. This quasi-experimental, single-group pretest-posttest study examined whether participation in a single-session professional development workshop was associated with changes in educators’ tolerance of risk in children’s play. Thirty educators attended a workshop focused on risky play, hazard-risk differentiation, inclusion of children with disabilities, loose-parts play, environmental affordances, and practitioner-informed implementation …

Reclaiming Presence: An Anthropological Study Of Digital Disconnection And Meaning-Making, Leslie De Paz

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Human attention is increasingly at risk in an unregulated digital ecosystem where overconsumption shapes neurological function, social interaction, and the ways people make meaning of everyday life. Dominant discourse around digital overuse tends to medicalize the problem, framing it as individual addiction or clinical dysfunction. In this thesis, I argue that such framing obscures what a cultural phenomenon is fundamentally, one in which people are actively questioning their relationship with technology, building awareness, and developing practices that help them slow down and reclaim agency within algorithmically mediated environments. This study draws on 22 semi-structured interviews with Gen Z and millennial …

Testing Adaptive Habitat Selection In Breeding Swainson's Hawks (Buteo Swainsoni), Elizabeth Meisman

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Adaptive habitat selection theory predicts that individuals preferentially select habitats that maximize or improve their fitness. However, patterns of habitat preferences may dampen with increasing population density and become decoupled from habitat quality when environmental conditions change. Such dynamics may be especially important in long-lived territorial species that exhibit site fidelity. One of the longest running raptor studies in North America has tracked an increasing population of breeding Swainson’s Hawks (Buteo swainsoni) in Butte Valley, California since 1985, where agricultural practices have shifted over the decades, providing an ideal system for studying these processes. Using nest records from …

Endocranial Lesions: A Paleopathological Study Of Late Medieval Skeletal Remains From Żelewo Poland, Francesca Aleen Meyer

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The site of Żelewo is located in a rural area of northwestern Poland, a region historically known as Pomerania. Skeletal remains from the cemetery associated with the archaeological site Żelewo 1-3, dating mostly to the 13th-15th centuries, are likely associated with a nearby Cistercian monastery. Numerous individuals from this site show evidence of endocranial lesions. To evaluate potential factors associated with the lesions, a differential diagnosis was performed based on macroscopic observations of endocranial lesion morphology and distribution. This study takes into account estimated age at death, biological sex, and other signs of pathology in the body. Potential confounding factors, …

“Thank You For Listening To Us”: Incorporating Community Context And Perspectives Into Sea-Level Rise Adaptation Planning For Fields Landing & King Salmon, California, Clara Riggio

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Fields Landing and King Salmon, California are two low-lying, coastal communities on Humboldt Bay (Wigi). These communities already experience coastal flooding during the highest astronomical tides each year, and flood conditions are expected to worsen as sea levels continue to rise. The Fields Landing & King Salmon (FLKS) Living with Water Project was created as a partnership between Humboldt County departments of Planning & Building and Public Works, along with support from social science researchers at Cal Poly Humboldt, including the author. In Chapter 1, I describe the co-production approach used throughout the project, including analysis of four dilemmas that …

Living With Water In Fields Landing & King Salmon: Community Knowledge Of Flooding And Adaptation Strategies In Coastal California, Kailin Sepp

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Known as “ground zero,” Humboldt Bay is among the most vulnerable areas to sea-level rise (SLR) due to geological and tectonic factors on the West Coast. While the land subsides, oceans rise, resulting in an area with one of the highest recorded rates of relative SLR on the West Coast. The residential communities of Fields Landing and King Salmon in South Humboldt Bay already experience regular coastal flooding. There is a need for better information and planning to understand the vulnerability to flooding/SLR and plan for adaptation. Typically, studies addressing flooding, such as vulnerability assessments and adaptation plans, are developed …

A Framework For Evaluating Riparian Climate Refugia In The Eel River Watershed, California, Farrah Tyler

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Climate change is increasing the need to identify and protect landscapes that support biodiversity through both habitat connectivity and climate refugia. Climate refugia are areas that remain relatively buffered from regional climatic change, enabling species to persist despite shifting environmental conditions. Riparian ecosystems can function as both movement corridors and climate refugia, yet methods for identifying these features and understanding the environmental processes that sustain them remain limited. In California's North Coast region, the identification and conservation of watersheds that may serve as climate refugia for sensitive plant and animal species will be essential for long-term ecosystem management and conservation. …