Digital Commons Network^™

Challenges Beyond Addiction: Maternal Experiences With Postpartum Substance Use Disorder Recovery And Perspectives Of Reproductive Healthcare Providers, Leah Holcomb

All Dissertations

Substance use disorders (SUD) impact millions of pregnant and postpartum people in the United States. With the increasing rates of perinatal substance use and the risk of overdose and death during the postpartum period, understanding overall functioning and the needs of postpartum persons is critical for informing interventions to reduce the impact of substance use within the perinatal period. The goal of this research is to explore the needs of postpartum people navigating SUD recovery.

This dissertation investigates postpartum maternal functioning within the context of early SUD recovery, as well as the comfort of reproductive healthcare providers (RHPs) to care …

Communication Of Oncology Genomics: Patients, Providers, And Artificial Intelligence, Lisa Stewart

All Dissertations

ABSTRACT This dissertation comprises five chapters concentrated on the communication of molecular profiling (MP) results between patients with cancer and oncology providers. Chapter I introduces MP and describes the significance of this testing. Chapter II is a state-of-the-art literature review focused on cancer patients’ expectations, knowledge, attitudes, satisfaction, and concerns regarding MP. Nineteen articles were reviewed, and findings revealed gaps in the communication process between patients and clinicians. Chapter III is a case study entitled “A Case for Caution: Patient Use of Artificial Intelligence.” In this case, pitfalls become apparent when a patient utilizes an artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot as …

Evolution And Biogeography Of High Appalachian Rove Beetles (Staphylinidae), Adam Haberski

All Dissertations

The southern Appalachian Mountains are a region of great species richness and a center of endemism in many taxa, including flightless arthropods. High elevation refugia have facilitated the persistence of ancient lineages (paleoendemism) and in situ speciation (neoendemism), but their ubiquity, timing, and relative importance is unknown. Congruent patterns among co-distributed, but independent taxa might illuminate common drivers of Appalachian endemism. In this dissertation, I investigated the influence of allopatric speciation, geography, and paleoclimate events on the diversification of endemic species in two genera of rove beetles (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae), Lathrobium Gravenhorst and Ischnosoma Stephens, using an integrative morphological and molecular …

Tin-Silver As A Novel Biodegradable Metallic Biomaterial, Charley Goodwin

All Dissertations

The Essure device is a non-hormonal, minimally-invasive, permanent female sterilization implant, removed from the market due to an increase in adverse events, hypothesized to be caused by corrosion of the Sn-Ag component of the implant. The goals of this dissertation were to first develop implant retrieval methods for Essure devices and surrounding tissue, documenting signs of degradation and metallic degradation products, then to characterize the electrochemical behavior of Sn-Ag in biologically representative environments and finally, to assess the biological interaction of Sn-Ag. Retrieval analyses developed successful methods, qualifying the degree of corrosion, primarily of the Sn-Ag component and finding Sn …

With Great Power: Using Comics To Facilitate Discussion Of Systemic Oppression In Higher Education Literature Classes, Keri Crist-Wagner

All Dissertations

Undergraduate student participation in general education classes constitutes a point of struggle for many educators, especially when it comes to lessons centered around systems of oppression like racism, sexism, or heterosexism. Using both constructivism and counter storytelling as theoretical frameworks, this multi-method phenomenological case study explored the experiences of undergraduate honors students in a semester long general education literature class. The purpose of this study was to 1) explore how comics can be used as a pedagogical tool in higher education classrooms to facilitate discussion of systems of oppression, 2) assess the ways in which students interacted with comics, and …

Hunting For Agriculture: Unraveling Ecological Motivations In The Transition To Farming By The Fremont Cultural Complex, Ryan Mcgrath

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

This study explored the profound human history shift from foraging to agriculture, focusing on Utah's Fremont cultural complex. Utilizing the Prey-Rank Model, we investigated whether dwindling encounter rates with high-rank prey prompted the Fremont's adoption of agriculture. We quantified past resource trends by analyzing the Utah archaeofaunal database to discern if ecological conditions influenced this transition. If confirmed, it suggests adaptive responses to a decline in high-ranked game led to a more resource-intensive survival strategy. This research provides crucial insights into the motivations behind the Fremont's agricultural adoption, enhancing our understanding of human-environment interactions and adaptations throughout history.

Consequences Of The Megafauna Extinction: Changes In Food Web Networks On The Edwards Plateau Across The Pleistocene–Holocene Transition, Quentin A. Smith Jr.

School of Biological Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

We are experiencing biodiversity loss due to climate change and human impacts, which is not only harmful to the environment but can also alter the composition of communities and interactions among species. The late Pleistocene experienced a loss of large-bodied mammals which resulted in significant changes in community structure due to changes in body size, diet, and species associations. The impact of these changes on species interactions and community structure across the Pleistocene-Holocene transition remains poorly understood. Using a robust data set of species composition, stable isotopes, body size, and climate variables, we constructed and compared ecological networks of mammal …

The Impact Of A Pgym Variant On Myophosphorylase Deficiency In Red Angus Composite Cattle And Changes In The Skeletal Muscle Transcriptome Due To The Intramuscular Administration Of Lidocaine In Wether Lambs, Mackenzie Christin Batt

School of Biological Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Project 1 focused on eight calves in a Nebraska herd (composite Simmental, Red Angus, Gelbvieh) that displayed exercise intolerance during forced activity. Available sire pedigrees contained a paternal ancestor within 2-4 generations in all affected calves. Pedigrees of the calves’ dams were unavailable, however, the cows were ranch-raised and retained from prior breeding seasons, where bulls used for breeding occasionally had a common ancestor. Therefore, it was hypothesized that a de novo autosomal recessive variant was causative of exercise intolerance in these calves. A genome-wide association analysis followed by whole-genome sequencing led to the identification of a variant in the …

Sexual Satisfaction, An Indicator Of Sexual Health And Well-Being? Insights From Sti/Hiv Prevention Research In European Men Who Have Sex With Men, Karel Blondeel, Massimo Mirandola, Lorenzo Gios, Cinta Folch, Christiana Noestlinger, Maddalena Cordioli, Petra Sutter, Marleen Temmerman, Igor Toskin

Centre of Excellence in Women and Child Health

Introduction Although sexual health has been holistically defined to include sexual satisfaction, it has been largely absent in health services and sexual and reproductive health and rights programmes in many parts of the world. We propose sexual satisfaction as a useful indicator, as one of the proxy measures for sexual health and well-being and as a component of well-being in general.

Methods The Sialon II project is a multicentre biological and behavioural cross-sectional community-based survey implemented across 13 European cities during 2013–2014 among men who have sex with men. Sexual satisfaction was explored using one single item: ‘How satisfied are …

Ein Bericht Aus Einer Akademie: Writing About Germany's Lost Jewish Scholars, 80 Years On, J.G. Allen

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

This volume explores the life and work of F.A. Mann—a German-born and (mostly) German-educated jurist who spent the operative parts of his professional life in the United Kingdom (UK). The project on which the volume is based set out to understand Mann’s life as a lawyer and describe his legacy—in English law, and also in German, European, and international law.

Where Silicone Meets Silicon: Analyzing Nier: Automata As A Subversive Postfeminist Text With Respect To Marxism, Existentialism And Feminism, Joaquin Vela

Communication Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

P300 Event-Related Potential Responses To Self-Relevant Stimuli, Jordan Razzak

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Previous literature has suggested an apparent P300 sensitivity to self-relevant stimuli. To further explore this relationship, we asked participants to submit 10 photos, each of a particular category (e.g. footwear, plants), to be used as either targets or distractors in a given condition of an oddball task. Furthermore, we attempted to see whether the effect of self-relevance on the P300 could be induced in a participant by allowing them to study a set of unique photos which would then be used as targets. Our analysis suggested that P300 amplitude elicited in response to self-relevant stimuli used as targets was statistically …

Regulation Of Cd4 T Cell Functions By Ncrna-Mediated Signaling Pathways During Chronic Viral Infections, Lam Nguyen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

CD4 T cell homeostasis and competency are critical for the effectiveness of antiviral immunity. However, CD4 T cells derived from people living with HIV (PLWH) and individuals with chronic HCV infection often exhibit an inflammaging phenotype, evidenced by persistent inflammation, immune activation, exhaustion, senescence, and cellular apoptosis. Despite intensive investigations, the molecular mechanisms underlying CD4 T cell dysfunction in antiretroviral therapy (ART)-controlled PLWH and HCV-infected patients remain poorly understood. By investigating the roles of non-coding (nc)RNA transcripts in regulating the functions of CD4 T cells derived from PLWH and HCV-infected patients, we demonstrated that long non-coding (lnc)RNA - growth arrest-specific …

Establishing “The Fossil Record”: A Database Of Vertebrate Paleontological Sites Across The State Of Tennessee, Sarah Mclaurine

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Fossil localities across the state of Tennessee and the data related to those sites were compiled from Tennessee Division of Geology Bulletin 84, titled “Tennessee’s Prehistoric Vertebrates,” and stored in a Microsoft Access geodatabase housed by the Department of Collections at the East Tennessee State University Museum of Natural History located at the Gray Fossil Site. Included in the database are forms to enter new site localities, view information about those already entered, view and add data to a master faunal list for the state, view sites repository information and store and add documents that are key-word searchable from the …

What Is Biological Engineering? – A Magazine, Morgan Christensen

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Biological Engineering is one of the less commonly known fields of engineering and can be challenging to describe to someone outside the discipline. The most common question I've been asked during my undergraduate career is "What is biological engineering?". My answer has changed throughout my time at Utah State University as I've had more experiences within the discipline. This project focuses on answering this question in the format of a magazine to help bridge the gap between those in the discipline and a general audience. By using a magazine as the format, the content must be organized and written in …

Effects Of Humidity On Native And Non-Native Cavity Nesting Solitary Bees, Elleke Grace Kofford Manwill

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Invasive species are defined as those that are not native to an ecosystem but may cause harm to the environment or to human health. Osmia cornifrons, a species introduced to the United States, and Osmia lignaria, a native species, are cavity-nesting solitary bees. Although not officially classified as invasive, O. cornifrons presents competition for the niche that O. lignaria inhabits. O. cornifrons has established populations throughout the East Coast and the Pacific Northwest, while O. lignaria is found all throughout the contiguous United States. This interspecies difference in geographical range exists despite their similar temperature ranges. To determine …

How Variation In Activity Time And Duration At Water Sources Affects Feral Horse Vulnerability To Cougar Predation In Southern Nevada, Katelyn Davies

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Feral horses have become prominent in the Intermountain West. Approximately 43,000 horses are found in Nevada alone. With increasing numbers, they have become a large portion of ungulate biomass. Thus, it is important to understand their behavior, as they become integrated into western wildlife communities. However, little research has been conducted on the ecology of feral horses, and their relationships with native ungulates, carnivores, and local resources such as water.

To address these concerns, I outlined three objectives: (1) determine if horses changed their water visitation activity times in relation to temperature. As a primarily diurnal species, we were interested …

It Started On A Stage, Jordan Lockwood

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

The creation of It Started On A Stage aimed to answer if any amount of experience with theater can affect an individual. The show is a devised piece inspired by a series of interviews with 15 subjects. Devised theater is a branch of applied theater where individuals collaborate on creating the script. The interviewees all had varying levels of experience in differing fields of expertise. I asked them a series of questions regarding their past and current experiences with theater. Regardless of their level of involvement or whether they were currently pursuing it, all of these participants agreed that theater …

A Review And Critical Analysis Of Yoga And Mindfulness Meditation In Pain Management For Individuals With Rheumatoid Arthritis: Design Of Prospective Yoga Intervention Lesson Plans, Jamie Butikofer

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is a chronic autoimmune disease that causes joint pain, inflammation, and in some cases permanent damage. This research project explores yoga’s potential to manage pain and improve quality of life for RA patients. A review of existing research investigated the impact of yoga on pain and function in RA. Studies employed various yoga programs, making comparisons difficult. All studies reported improvements in areas of pain, inflammation, emotional and mental wellbeing, or disease activity. Interestingly, meditation, a core tenet of traditional yoga, emerged as a potentially beneficial component. Studies suggest it may help manage chronic pain and improve …

Exploring Graph Neural Networks In Reinforcement Learning: A Comparative Study On Architectures For Locomotion Tasks, Gaukhar Nurbek

Theses and Dissertations

Deep Reinforcement learning (DRL) has gained importance in optimizing control policies, while Graph Neural Networks (GNNs) offer a robust approach for modeling complex relationships within systems represented as graphs. This thesis investigates the integration of DRL and GNNs to optimize control policies for robotic tasks, with a focus on locomotion. It compares static and dynamic GNN architectures for control policy predictions, revealing their strengths and limitations in adapting to locomotion predictions. The study assesses the impact of model structure complexity on GNNs' predictive capabilities, showcasing how intricate model structure can maximize GNNs' potential in capturing spatial and relational dependencies when …

Examining Time Spent On Social Media And Its Effects On Mental Health In Terms Of Body Image Concerns, Self Esteem And Overall Quality Of Life Among U.S. Adults, Rigel Macarena Pinon

Theses and Dissertations

Daily exposure and dependence on computer-based technologies (smartphones) allows for 24/7 constant access to social media (i.e., Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, TikTok, and other sites) and has empirically shown to have a positive and negative impact on the mental health of individuals across cultures in our society. Depending on user intent, exposure, and interests, social media platforms can create a sense of community; however, some of the platforms and what users post about themselves has led to cyberbullying, low self-esteem, user addiction, suicide, self-harm behaviors such as eating disorders, sexual dysfunction, and other mental health issues such as depression and …

An Exploratory Case Study Of Students’ Blended Learning Experiences During Post Emergency Learning, Heidy M. Garcia Moreno

Theses and Dissertations

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the integration of technology in classrooms. This has highlighted the need for a deeper understanding of how students experience these learning environments. In response, this case study explored how students experience blended learning in post emergency learning through a digital equity lens. The analysis of interview data revealed six major themes, which yielded three key findings. These findings emphasize the need to embrace a simplified approach to technology integration, refine instructional practices to effectively use technology as a supplement rather than a replacement for traditional tactile elements, while also advancing digital literacy that builds high …

Risk Factors For Blunt Cerebrovascular Injury In A Cohort Of Pediatric Patients With Cervical Seat Belt Sign, Daniel A Najar, Marylou Cardenas-Turanzas, Jadeyn King, Manish N Shah, Charles S Cox, Irma T Ugalde

The Brown Foundation: Institute of Molecular Medicine

Background: Blunt cerebrovascular injury (BVCI), injury to the carotid or vertebral arteries, may result from forces involving seatbelts. Although previous studies have not found a seat belt sign to be a significant predictor for BCVI, it is still used to screen patients for BCVI.

Objective: This study aims to determine risk factors for BCVI within a cohort of patients with seat belt signs.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study using our institutional trauma registry and included patients younger than 18 years with blunt trauma who both had a computed tomography angiography (CTA) of the neck performed and had evidence …

‘Samoye Vazhnoye’: Behind The Scenes Of Russian Cinema, 1908–1924, Katerina Ludwig

War, Diplomacy, and Society (MA) Theses

From the first decade of the 20^th century to the middle of the 1920s, cinema in Russia exposed how politics and the modern medium were inseparably intertwined. As works that were produced during a period of great turmoil and uncertainty, films revealed more than a unilateral relationship. Cinema was used in Russia in the late-Imperial and early Soviet eras as an active tool of entertainment, propaganda, art, education, and intellectual discussion. Studying its intersectional nature illuminates areas obscured by purely political or artistic perspectives, which tell either opposite or mutually emboldening tales. This thesis argues on behalf of both …

Vmed 531: Introduction To Animal Welfare A Faculty-Led Inquiry Into Reflective Scholarly Teaching Benchmark Portfolio, Amy Walton

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

This benchmark portfolio documents course design, student learning, and reflection of teaching methods for VMED 531 Introduction to Animal Welfare. This one credit hour course provides an overview of animal welfare topics and assessment through a veterinary medical lens. Participants are first year veterinary students that have been accepted into Professional Program of Veterinary Medicine (PPVM). This course creates a foundational knowledge base regarding animal welfare topics and fosters critical thinking with how veterinary treatments, surgeries, and animal-use practices influence animal welfare. The ability to utilize critical thinking skills and science-based evidence to create a sound solution is essential regarding …

Primary Care Patient Interests In Joining A Planned Multi-Cancer Early Detection Clinical Trial, Ronald E. Myers, Mie Hallman, Ayako Shimada, Melissa Dicarlo, Kaitlyn V. Davis, William T. Leach, Christopher V. Chambers

Department of Medical Oncology Faculty Papers

INTRODUCTION: Clinical trials are being conducted and are being planned to assess the safety and efficacy of multi-cancer early detection (MCED) tests for use in cancer screening. This study aimed to determine the feasibility of primary care patient outreach in recruiting participants to a planned MCED clinical trial, assess patient interest in trial participation, and measure decisional conflict related to participation.

METHODS: The research team used the electronic medical record of a large, urban health care system to identify primary care patients 50-80 years of age who were potentially eligible for a planned MCED trial. We mailed information about the …

Dynamics Of Compositions Of Some Lotka–Volterra Mappings Operating In A Two-Dimensional Simplex, Dilfuza Eshmamatova, Farrukh Yusupov

Turkish Journal of Mathematics

In a number of applied problems (immunology, epidemiology, virology, etc.), there is a need to study the dynamics of the trajectories of the compositions of the Lotka–Volterra mappings. In this paper, some variants of these compositions are considered, in particular, the dynamics of the trajectories of the compositions of the Lotka–Volterra mappings acting in a two-dimensional simplex, with transitive tournaments, which can be applied in the study of these processes. Cards of fixed points are constructed for compositions and the characters of fixed points are studied.

Adults Matter Too: An Examination Of State Adult Missing Persons Policies And Procedures To Implement A Best Practices Handbook, Hunter Smith

Honors Theses

The most recent estimates put the number of active missing person records at 97,127. Over the past eight years, child active records have decreased by 2,530, while adult active records have increased by 14,696. While there is no clear explanation for this trend, a common theory is that there are multiple federal and state laws requiring the entry of missing people under the age of 2; however, very few, if any, extend to adults. Additionally, there is a lack of standardization across available policies and procedures for where these cases should be reported, the time frame for doing so, and …

Exploring The Relationship Between Anxiety And Virtual Reality Sickness, David Wesley Woolverton

Graduate Theses and Dissertations (2019 - present)

As virtual reality (VR) becomes more commonly used in education, it is important to understand the technology’s weakness and mitigate any potential negative effects on student success. One adverse side-effect of VR use is simulation-induced motion sickness, known in the context of VR as VR sickness. Previous research by Howard and Van Zandt (2021) found that possessing a phobia had a significant positive correlation with VR sickness, but only if the phobia is triggered by the simulation, suggesting that symptoms are actually connected to the anxiety the phobia induces. This study explored the hypothesized correlation between anxiety and VR sickness, …

Flood Waters Rise: Hurricanes, Disaster Response, And Race Relations In Coastal Alabama, 1906 – 2006, Danielle Leonardi

Graduate Theses and Dissertations (2019 - present)

This thesis examines the changes in social relations after natural disasters, specifically hurricanes. The Hurricane of 1906 caused massive damage to Mobile due to the limited warnings. Tensions before the hurricane were already heightened from the Atlanta Race Riot and boiled over after the storm, resulting in a double lynching. Mobile received very little federal aid after the 1906 hurricane and relief heavily on their own communities and the Alabama National Guard. Hurricane Frederic in 1979 was much different because of its position in the Civil Rights Movement. The government relief was slow due to the overwhelming amount needed, and …