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Evaluation Of Heavy Metal Pollution, Water Quality, And The Effectiveness Of Remedial Sediment Dredging In The Lower Passaic River, New Jersey, Oluwafemi Soetan

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Toxic metal pollution is a leading environmental concern for aquatic systems globally and remedial dredging has been widely employed to mitigate its harmful impacts. In terms of the short-term impacts of remedial dredging, mixed results are reported in several studies. Despite its immediate negative impacts including saturation of water with toxic metals, increased turbidity, and sediment resuspension, positive impacts can be recorded over a stabilization period of 6 – 24 months after dredging. Nevertheless, the sustainability of these recorded positive effects cannot be ascertained as some studies have reported long-term regression in remediated sites’ conditions. Evaluation of success determinants, site-measure …

The Importance Of Framing The Context Of Black/African Americans' Livelihood To Enhance Health Outcomes And Mitigate Health Inequalities, Elvis Gyan

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

This study investigates the portrayal of Black/African Americans in Health Marriage and Relationship Education (HMRE) programs, which predominantly follow Eurocentric models while examining how social and structural determinants (e.g., community context) influence stress levels, general health, and relationship satisfaction through two main objectives. Firstly, it aims to scrutinize the acknowledgment of biases towards non-Eurocentric communities in published Administration of Children and Families HMRE programs, analyzing 39 research studies. Secondly, it examines the interplay between perceived community context, stress as a mediator, general health, and relationship satisfaction among Black/African Americans across three distinct articles by testing hypothesized process models. Results for …

Analysis Of Social Behavior Of The African Great Apes During Feeding And Non-Feeding Contexts, Jessica Hale

Master's Theses

The three African great apes, bonobos, chimpanzees and gorillas, despite similar habitats, differ considerably in their sociality and feeding ecology. There have been many studies that have investigated the feeding ecology and social behaviors of these species, but there is extremely limited literature available on how feeding ecology may have affected ape social evolution. Chimpanzees are frugivorous, which forces them into close proximity when foraging given the clumped nature of this resource. Bonobos and gorillas, however, are fallback food consumers, which allow them to spread out as they forage. This thesis project aims to test the hypothesis that differences in …

Gaseous Ozone To Improve The Microbial Safety Of Spices, Seeds, And Nuts, Arshpreet Kaur Khattra

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Due to the increasing number of reported outbreaks of pathogens in low-moisture foods (LMFs), there is a need to investigate novel non-thermal gaseous technologies to increase the microbiological safety of spices, nuts, and seeds without compromising the product quality. The objective of this study was to inactivate Salmonella spp. in different spices, seeds, and nuts using gaseous ozone treatment and evaluate the suitability of Enterococcus faecium as a potential surrogate for Salmonella. Each food product (dried basil leaves, black peppercorn, chia seeds, and walnuts) was separately inoculated with a 5-strain Salmonella and E. faecium cocktail and equilibrated to water activity …

Exploring The Effects Of Mindful Nature Walks On College Student Anxiety, Grace Young

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Individuals pursuing a degree in higher education face challenges that lead to greater levels of anxiety than that of the general U.S. adult population. This disparity, further heightened by the COVID-19 pandemic, presents a need for higher education institutions to search for ways to address this spike in student anxiety and other mental health concerns. This mixed-methods study explored mindful nature walks as a low-cost and easily accessible way for college students to reduce levels of experienced anxiety. Using validated quantitative measures, this study examined the impact of three weekly, consecutive 30-minute mindful nature walks on state and general anxiety …

A Mixed Methods Exploration Of Interoceptive Awareness In Adults Who Stutter, Hazel Malcolm

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Stuttering is commonly described as a disorder of speech fluency characterized by primary speech behaviors that are judged by external observers to be typical of stuttering, including part-word repetitions, prolongations, and blocks (i.e., silent prolongations or postural fixations). Despite wide use in the field of speech-pathology, definitions focusing on these ‘primary’ behaviors have also been criticized as ‘surface’ or ‘perceptual’ definitions that favor the experience of a listener over that of the speaker. Recent qualitative evidence suggests that, when asked, adults who stutter (AWS) instead define stuttering as an internal feeling or awareness of being ‘stuck’ that is surrounded by …

A Mobile Application Intervention For Insomnia Among College Students, Veronica Floyd

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Previous studies have found that the prevalence of insomnia among college students is high. This has implications for students mental and physical well-being, academic performance, and the onset of more chronic insomnia symptomology. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) is the front-line treatment for insomnia, but cost and time are often barriers to treatment access. The goal of this study was to test the feasibility, acceptability, and efficacy of a more cost-effective self-guided version of CBT-I (via mobile application). Fifty-five college students, who were mostly women (82%) and mean age 19.3 (SD = 2.3) years with moderate insomnia symptoms were …

Determination Of Ileal Digestible Phosphorous Values In Various Inorganic Sources Meat And Bone Meal Sources, Jay Hampton

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Concerns around the economic and environmental consequences of suboptimal or excess dietary P levels in broiler diets has led to increased interest in determining ileal P digestibility values for feed ingredients. Therefore, two experiments (EXP) were conducted to determine the apparent (AID) and standardized ileal digestibility (SID) of P in various inorganic phosphates and meat and bone meals (MBM) using the direct method. In both EXP 1 and 2, ileal samples were collected at 22 d post-hatch from birds fed semi-purified diets based on dextrose and corn starch containing test ingredients and one N and P free (NPF) diet for …

Evaluating The Association Between Daily Fluctuations In Sleep And Blood Pressure, Mara Egeler

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Hypertension is a major contributing factor for heart disease, with nearly half of US adults meeting criteria. While studies have begun to examine the relationship between insomnia and blood pressure (BP), little is still known regarding the relationship between daily fluctuations in sleep and BP. This study aimed to provide further clarification on the role insomnia plays in the development of hypertension, including the impact that daily fluctuations in sleep have on fluctuations in BP. Participants included 61 adults from the greater Northwest Arkansas area (63.9% White, 67.2% Female, 30-79 y) who completed 10 consecutive days of sleep and blood …

Characterizing The Role Of Chemo-Mechanical Couplings In The Activation Process Of Proteins That Undergo Conformational Changes, Ugochi Isu

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Proteins are not static entities; rather, they are dynamic macromolecules that undergo conformational changes to perform their biological functions. These structural transitions are often coupled to chemical events such as lipid interactions, or changes in the cellular environment. Understanding the intricate interplay between chemical perturbations and the resulting mechanical response is crucial for elucidating the activation mechanisms of proteins. This dissertation aims to characterize the role of chemo-mechanical couplings in the activation process of two G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs): Cannabinoid Receptor 1 (CB1) and Metabotropic Glutamate Receptor 1 (mGluR1). We employ molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the conformational landscapes of …

Navigating Transitions: Utilizing Autoethnographic Writing Prompts To Support Nontraditional College Students, Brijet Lynn Beazer

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study explores the transition nontraditional students undergo as they embark on their college journey and the unique challenges they face. Leveraging autoethnographic writing prompts as an intervention strategy, the project employed a participatory approach over virtual platforms to capture the tapestry of experiences and connect participants to form a supportive community. Participants included older individuals with work experience, some who experienced parenthood, or those returning after an extended break. Through crafted prompts, individuals shared their academic journey, balancing work, and family responsibilities. The reflections gathered provide valuable data, offering insights into the challenges and triumphs of nontraditional students. The …

The Causes And Consequences Of Behavioral Plasticity In Anti-Predatory Defense And Mate Choice In Tropical Butterflies, Sushant Potdar

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Behavioral plasticity, where individuals change their behaviors in response to varying environmental and social conditions, affects major evolutionary trajectories. But how individuals change these behaviors under certain social situations, and what the genetic causes and consequences of such behavioral changes are in response to social environments are yet to be fully understood. I address these questions in the context of anti-predatory behaviors (chapter 1), and mate choice (chapters 2, 3, 4) in tropical butterflies. In the context of anti-predatory behaviors, I found predator-specific behavioral changes in toxic Heliconius butterflies, suggesting variance in predation pressures and butterfly recognition of bird calls. …

Evaluation Of The Effect Of A Commercial Lippia Origanoides Essential Oil Extract On Salmonella Serovar Enteritidis As A Natural Alternative To Antibiotics In The Poultry Industry, Abdiel Atencio

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the present research was to evaluate the bactericidal activity of a microencapsulated Lippia origanoides essential oils (LOEOs) against Salmonella Enteritidis (SE) in an in vitro crop assay and in a prophylactic broiler chicken model using three low doses of the product: 75 ppm, 150 ppm and 300 ppm. Two trials of each assay were conducted. Day-of-hatch male Cobb-Vantress broiler chickens were randomly allotted to one of four groups: 1) positive control group; 2) 75 ppm LOEOs group; 3) 150 ppm LOEOs group; 4) 300 LOEOs group. Chicks were fed and watered ad libitum in heated brooder batteries …

Fabrication And Characterization Of Black Phosphorus Terahertz Photoconductive Antennae, Katie Michelle Welch

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Advancements in terahertz (THz) imaging systems, particularly for applications like post-surgical analysis of breast cancer, have led to the exploration of novel materials such as black phosphorus as the active material for a THz photoconductive antenna (PCA). This thesis, motivated by innovative techniques developed at the University of Arkansas, investigates the potential of black phosphorus as a material to enhance the performance of THz PCAs, focusing on generation efficiency and bandwidth. Previous implementations of BP as THz emitters have shown limitations, highlighting the need for thorough material characterization and optimized fabrication processes. Therefore, we adopted a dual-phase approach to this …

Competition And Criticality In Cortical Neural Circuits Underlie Behavior And Optimize Working Memory, Jacob Harrison Barfield

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

One of the primary goals of neuroscience is to explain how brain function emerges from dynamic interactions among large populations of neurons. A long-standing hypothesis at the interface of physics and neuroscience posits that neural circuits may operate close to the critical point of a phase transition. In this dissertation, we will investigate a new form of criticality and the implications that it has in working memory and the generation of voluntary body movements. We will utilize this new form of criticality to investigate the functional benefits that can be harnessed by operating near the critical point when performing working …

Outcome Measures Or Graduation Rates, That Is The Question, Miran Kang

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The study compared the Outcome Measures (OM) to the traditional Graduation Rates (GR) to ascertain if OM portrayed the performance of higher education institutions differently than GR and to determine which of the two metrics aligned better with accountability policy objectives. GR refers to the percentages of first-time, full-time students who obtain a degree or certificate within 150% of the normal time. OM presents the award status of all degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students on four cohorts: first-time, full-time (FTFT); first-time, part-time (FTPT); non-first-time, full-time (NFTFT); and non-first-time, part-time (NFTPT). OM was a more comprehensive indicator than GR, particularly for 2-year institutions, …

Two Studies: Aromatization-Driven Ring Opening Functionalization Of Unstrained Cycloalkanones Through Visible Light Catalysis, And Synthesis Of Amino Endoperoxides Using Self-Doped Titanium Dioxide (Ti3+@Tio2) As A Photocatalyst, Enoch Kudoahor

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The pharmaceutical industry has been focused on discovering new innovative drugs over the last decade, but the syntheses are either inefficient or the approach to environmental sustainability raises significant concerns. Photochemistry and photocatalysis have found widespread applications in organic synthesis as a result of this pressing issue. Our role as organic chemists is to improve environmental quality by creating a "greener" world through the development of efficient synthetic methods and strategies. Solar energy is now one of the most abundant and renewable natural resources. The emergence of environmental sustainability concerns has led to the development of new techniques for harnessing …

Analysis Of The Relationship Between Religion, Abortion, And Assisted Reproductive Technology: Insights Into Cross-National Public Opinion, Amy L. Adamczyk, Brittany Suh, Lindsay Lerner

Publications and Research

With advancement in reproductive technologies, public opinion regarding these procedures varies considerably across the world. While prominent public debates have focused on abortion, we know less about the factors shaping feelings regarding Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART). Both procedures challenge the idea that human life starts with conception – with the fertilization of an embryo. Using European Values Survey data and multilevel modeling, we compare how religion and other personal and country-level factors shape disapproval toward abortion and ART. Conservative Protestants and people who are more engaged with their religion and live in a more religious country are more likely to …

2024 Summer - Veterans Upward Bound Newsletter, Veterans Upward Bound, East Tennessee State University

Veterans Upward Bound Newsletters

No abstract provided.

Life On The Edge: The Cambrian Marine Realm And Oxygenation, Sara Pruss, Benjamin C. Gill

Geosciences: Faculty Publications

The beginning of the Phanerozoic saw two biological events that set the stage for all life that was to come: (a) the Cambrian Explosion (the appearance of most marine invertebrate phyla) and (b) the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event (GOBE), the subsequent substantial accumulation of marine biodiversity. Here, we examine the current state of understanding of marine environments and ecosystems from the late Ediacaran through the Early Ordovician, which spans this biologically important interval. Through a compilation and review of the existing geochemical, mineralogical, sedimentological, and fossil records, we argue that this interval was one of sustained low and variable marine …

Investigation Of K-2 Teachers' Self-Efficacy In One Rural School District, Crystal Schaefer

Curriculum and Instruction Undergraduate Honors Theses

In the past four years education has undergone many changes, whether it be shifting to distance learning in 2020 or changing student behaviors, and these changes have undeniable effects on teachers and their self-efficacy. The purpose of this study is to investigate teachers’ sense of self-efficacy. A 24-question Qualtrics survey was distributed through email for kindergarten through second grade teachers between two elementary schools in one rural Arkansas school district. These 24 questions were adapted from The Teachers’ Sense of Efficacy Scale. The survey collected 16 total responses. The survey results provided evidence that teacher efficacy in instructional strategies is …

Student Self-Efficacy And Attitude In Organic Chemistry: A Comparison Of Two Pedagogical Approaches, Matthew Autry

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Cardiovascular Risk As A Mediator Of Associations Between Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor With Longitudinal Brain And Cognitive Trajectories In Older Adults, Jennifer Shearon

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Prior work has shown that higher levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) are associated with better brain health and cognitive function. There is also evidence that BDNF is present in cardiovascular tissue and that it may be beneficial for cardiovascular function. This is evidenced by higher BDNF being associated with lower incidence of coronary heart disease and mortality, and with lower incidence of cardiovascular risk factors. The goal of the current study was to investigate the relationship between BDNF and cardiovascular function, and to assess whether there is a mediating or moderating role of cardiovascular health in the relationship between …

An Investigation Of Information Structures In Dna, Joel Mohrmann

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The information-containing nature of the DNA molecule has been long known and observed. One technique for quantifying the relationships existing within the information contained in DNA sequences is an entity from information theory known as the average mutual information (AMI) profile. This investigation sought to use principally the AMI profile along with a few other metrics to explore the structure of the information contained in DNA sequences.

Treating DNA sequences as an information source, several computational methods were employed to model their information structure. Maximum likelihood and maximum a posteriori estimators were used to predict missing bases in DNA sequences. …

Ublade: Efficient Batch Processing For Uncertainty Graph Queries, Siyuan Yao, Yuchen Li, Shixuan Sun, Jiaxin Jiang, Bingsheng He

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

The study of uncertain graphs is crucial in diverse fields, including but not limited to protein interaction analysis, viral marketing, and network reliability. Processing queries on uncertain graphs presents formidable challenges due to the vast probabilistic space they encapsulate. While existing systems employ batch processing to address these challenges, their performance is often compromised by the suboptimal selection of parallel graph traversal methods, the excessive costs in random number generation, and additional sampling-loads intrinsic to batch processing. In this paper, we introduce uBlade, an efficient batch-processing framework for uncertain graph queries on multi-core CPUs. uBlade utilizes the work-efficient graph traversal, …

Vibmilk: Non-Intrusive Milk Spoilage Detection Via Smartphone Vibration, Yuezhong Wu, Wei Song, Yanxiang Wang, Dong Ma, Weitao Xu, Mahbub Hassan, Wen Hu

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Quantifying the chemical process of milk spoilage is challenging due to the need for bulky, expensive equipment that is not user-friendly for milk producers or customers. This lack of a convenient and accurate milk spoilage detection system can cause two significant issues. First, people who consume spoiled milk may experience serious health problems. Secondly, milk manufacturers typically provide a “best before” date to indicate freshness, but this date only shows the highest quality of the milk, not the last day it can be safely consumed, leading to significant milk waste. A practical and efficient solution to this problem is proposed …

Physical And Stochiometric Controls On Nutrient Uptake And Ecosystem Respiration In Contrasting Sites, Jancoba K. Dorley

Civil Engineering ETDs

Meteorological, hydrological, and biogeochemical processes naturally control stream ecosystems. These processes define the frequency and distribution of precipitation and the supply and demand of solutes and particles to support aquatic food chains through space and time. Studies have also found that stream ecosystems are also controlled by anthropogenic activities, which occur on a much shorter timescale. These anthropogenic activities affect stream ecosystems' structure and function from local to planetary changes to the environment. It is essential for scientists and engineers to understand the relationships between naturally occurring processes and those created by human activities for a better interpretation of stream …

Automatic Grading Of Short Answers Using Large Language Models In Software Engineering Courses, Nguyen Binh Duong Ta, Yi Meng Chai

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Short-answer based questions have been used widely due to their effectiveness in assessing whether the desired learning outcomes have been attained by students. However, due to their open-ended nature, many different answers could be considered entirely or partially correct for the same question. In the context of computer science and software engineering courses where the enrolment has been increasing recently, manual grading of short-answer questions is a time-consuming and tedious process for instructors. In software engineering courses, assessments concern not just coding but many other aspects of software development such as system analysis, architecture design, software processes and operation methodologies …

Additive Manufacturing Of Porous Tungsten Carbide Structural Electrode Components Using Robocasting, James Bevis

All Theses

Thanks to ideal mechanical and electrochemical properties, Tungsten Carbide (WC) shows excellent potential as a structural electrode material for multifunctional devices. These devices have applications in electric vehicles, for example, structural fuel cells and massless batteries. In such a context, structural WC electrodes will also benefit from porosity to decrease their weight and increase their surface area and chemical reactivity. Porous WC is a useful material for this field because of its high strength-to-weight ratio and electrical properties. However, current manufacturing methods can be expensive, complex, and limited, so the intent is to provide a more simplistic and sustainable method …

Broadening The Application Range Of Cell-Free Protein Expression Systems, Matthew Becker

All Theses

Centralized protein manufacturing platforms make the delivery of needed therapies to places with limited infrastructure almost impossible. Cell-free protein expression systems, systems that utilize protein production machinery extracted from cells, offer these communities a viable protein expression platform that is robust and easily deliverable to the place of need. Much work in cell-free system engineering looks to increase the hardiness of cell-free system (CFS) components, like the extract and reaction buffer, needed to carry transcription and translation of gene therapeutic targets forward. Freeze- and air-drying of extract, reaction buffer, or both with certain additives, like sugar molecules, has been proposed …