Digital Commons Network^™

How Regional Innovation Networks Are Governed: Three Essays On The Roles Of Network Management In Network Effectiveness And Evolution, Beomgeun Cho

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Although a networked mode of governance has been often considered as an alternative or superior approach compared to hierarchy and market-based models, it has become clear that networks are also susceptible to failure without purposeful and deliberative management of interorganizational relationships. Constructing a longitudinal dataset of 16 regional innovation networks in South Korea, this dissertation examines how Regional Public Research Institutes (RPRIs) serve as network managers who initiate, facilitate, and mediate regional innovation systems. Drawing on a network research tradition rooted in the Dutch School of governance networks, this study examines how RPRIs leverage social structural resources, originating from their …

Exploring Nucleic Acid Modifications For Rna-Based Therapeutics: Insights From Molecular Dynamics Simulations, Samantha Biaesch

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Nucleic acid modifications are pivotal in biological processes due to their multifaceted roles. They regulate gene expression by modulating transcription, with modifications in the nucleic acid, sugar group, or in its phosphate backbone. In our investigation, we explore the use of molecular dynamics simulations to study nucleic acid modifications for potential applications in RNA-based therapeutics. These modifications introduce nonstandard atoms, such as selenium, and new parameterizations must be performed to properly simulate in GROMACS. These parameters govern bonded (strength of bonds, angles and dihedrals) and non-bonded (size and charges) interactions for each of the atoms in the modification. The first …

Barrier Removal Prioritization To Increase Climate Resiliency And Aquatic Connectivity For Communities In The Upper Susquehanna Basin, Cassandra Mae Davis

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The streams and rivers of the Upper Susquehanna Basin have been heavily modified over centuries through deforestation of nearshore areas and creation of physical barriers, such as dams and culverts. Dams and undersized culverts negatively affect aquatic organisms by modifying habitat conditions and restricting movement of these organisms. In addition, improperly maintained dams and undersized culverts can intensify flooding impacts and negatively affect water quality. A standardized method is needed to determine which barriers should be prioritized for assessment and potential replacement or removal based on multiple ecosystem and societal factors. The goal of this analysis was to have a …

Is The Language Surrounding Current Punk Culture Signaling A Watering Down Of Dissent? Culture Mapping The Signifying Language Of Present-Day Punk Against Original Punk To See If It Is Still Addressing Societal Issues And Challenging The Status Quo., Marie Lena Tupot

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Punk, originating from the economic turmoil of 1970s Britain, has transitioned into the digital realm, shedding its traditional symbols of rebellion while posing questions about contemporary dissent, such as: Are Punk ideals still addressing societal issues and challenging the status quo, or are they becoming more superficial or commercialized? Or are expressions of dissent genuine and rooted in lived experiences, or are they being appropriated for commercial gain? This study delves into the language of the shifting subcultures of Punk, silently thriving online through Cyberpunks, Cypherpunks, Anarchists, Anarcho-capitalists, and Cryptopunks. Each subgroup expresses rebellion uniquely: Cyberpunks through hacking, Cypherpunks through …

Communities Of Autonomous Language Learners: Participation Spaces In Social Media (Three Articles Dissertation), Wuri Prima Kusumastuti

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

The field of autonomous language learning in second language acquisition has experienced significant growth since its introduction by Holec in the 1980s. Several studies have explored how to promote learning autonomy in various spaces, including online learning environments. However, research related to autonomous language learning in online informal spaces is still ongoing. This dissertation aims to fill this gap by examining the role of online informal learning in promoting autonomous language learning, specifically focusing on how communities of autonomous language learners (CoALLs) empower and support their members to improve their learning autonomy and language proficiency. Additionally, it explores how fully …

A Content Analysis Of Tiktok Challenges In The News, Michael Jakakas

ALL - Honors Theses

Social media is a phenomenon that has drastically altered how people receive information about current events, communicate with each other, and consume entertainment. Apps such as TikTok have become widely used by many but have also faced increased scrutiny for the nature of its content including viral challenges where users will post a challenge video doing an activity that often has the potential to lead to injury. This content analysis study looks to analyze how these TikTok challenges are covered by news media by assessing how frequent news coverage of TikTok challenges is and the characteristics of such coverage. The …

Upstream Local Actor And Community-Based Potential In Mass Atrocity Prevention, Numa R. Khan

ALL - Honors Theses

The concept of genocide and mass atrocity prevention is still relatively new. Research on genocide prevention would not begin until post 1995 following the genocides in Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia (Rosenberg & Zucker, 2015). Therefore, there is much left to be uncovered in the field (Rosenberg & Zucker, 2015), despite that genocides and mass atrocities have occurred for centuries prior to the coining of the term and continue to occur to this day (Bellamy, 2015).

The term genocide falls under atrocity crimes, an umbrella term that refers to genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and occasionally ethnic cleansing (United …

Cultural And Environmental Change In A Period Of Westernized Tourism: Bali, Indonesia, Barbara Buck

ALL - Honors Theses

Dutch colonizers opened Bali for tourism at the beginning of the 20th century, and since that time tourism has led to changes in Bali’s culture, environment, and local resources. In the late 1900s, tourism grew to a new level, which resulted in a shift of industry control away from Balinese people. This project examines the problem of tourism from a social and environmental science lens. By compiling literature and science from various fields of study, this project aims to illustrate the complexity of Bali’s tourism problem in an interdisciplinary way. The lack of local control over tourism perpetuated and exacerbated …

Investigating User Awareness Of Privacy And Security Concerns In The Iot Era, Jack Ruffner

ALL - Honors Theses

The Internet of Things (IoT) has had a significant impact on the way we view and interact with technology. This is especially prevalent in the areas of smart homes, smart tech, and mobile devices. However, despite the advantageous functions of IoT devices, they are accompanied by numerous security concerns that enable several severe privacy concerns. Many studies and informative articles present ideas that explain and prove the presence of the various risks associated with IoT devices and the need to address them. This thesis paper aims to explore the relationship between IoT device usage and security and privacy risks as …

Evaluating And Enhancing The New York State Mesonet (Nysm) Snow Accumulation Estimation, Christopher Gilberti

ALL - Honors Theses

This research project aims to examine and enhance the performance of the New York State Mesonet (NYSM) Snow Accumulation Estimation. The NYSM is a state-of-the-art network of 126 standard weather stations located across the state of New York, collecting high-quality meteorological data to improve forecast accuracy, reduce uncertainty, and mitigate harm. All NYSM standard stations measure snow depth with Campbell Scientific’s SR50A ultrasonic distance sensor. This acoustic sensor measures the distance from the sensor to a rigid snowboard if there is no snow on the ground or the top of snow layer. A reference distance and a temperature correction are …

Officeguard: The Anti-Phishing Training Game, Olivia Benaoumeur

ALL - Honors Theses

Anti-phishing training is crucial for the business world. Therefore, much of the existing training is focused on employees. Education in the form of training tools and simulators helps increase the retention of information for these employees (Jampen et al., 2020). However, this education may be coming too late. Educating high school and college students on email etiquette and training during their formative years is essential to help protect students and their future employers. The gamification of training tools has the potential to “enrich the educational process and improve learning outcomes” (Lampropoulos & Sidiropoulos, 2024). The term ‘serious game’ describes a …

Genus-Specific Probes And Advanced Imaging Technologies For Bacterial Detection In Canine Dental Plaque, Meghan Stern

ALL - Honors Theses

Periodontal disease is an inflammation of the gums that can progress to bone resorption in the jaw and eventual tooth loss. A contributor to this disease is the buildup of subgingival and supragingival plaque, which consists of hundreds of bacterial species. To study the bacteria involved in periodontal disease, we use extracted canine teeth as our model. Canines were chosen based on their similarities with humans at the bacterial phylum level, as well as having a similar progression of periodontal disease. However, there are significant differences at lower levels of taxonomy of bacterial abundance and prevalence. The abundance and prevalence …

A Review Of Maslow’S Hierarchy Of Needs In Students During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Hunter Gardner

ALL - Honors Theses

The COVID-19 pandemic unexpectedly struck the world in 2020 and had long-lasting effects. Many people had lost their jobs, the economy faltered, and people were stuck at home with no way of seeing friends or non-immediate family. The pandemic also had a profound impact on students. Schools were forced to transition into online learning, which was something that many school districts and universities were not prepared for (Russell, Head, Wolfe-Enslow, Holland, & Zimmerman, 2022). The COVID-19 pandemic also had an impact on people's needs. According to Abraham Maslow (1943), people’s needs are arranged into a hierarchy where basic level needs …

“Know Your Facts Before Taking A Stand:” The Schenectady County League Of Women Voter’S Impact On Local Policy Through Civic Education, 1919-1945, Alice Russo

ALL - Honors Theses

This thesis explores the pivotal role of the Schenectady County League of Women Voters in shaping local policy and politics through civic education during the interwar years. Empowered by the principle “know your facts before taking a stand and going public,” the Schenectady County League educated both its members and the public on policy issues in a nonpartisan and all partisan way. The Schenectady County League’s strategic emphasis on nonpartisan civic education empowered its members to become well-informed advocates for policy change. By prioritizing issue-based stances over partisan politics, the Schenectady County League expanded its influence beyond traditional boundaries and …

Argonaute 2 Binding Affinity To Determine Repression Of Mirna-Mrna Pairs, Christina M. S. Karadiakos

ALL - Honors Theses

MicroRNAs (miRNA) are a class of small non-coding RNAs that play a key role in gene silencing. miRNAs form an RNA-induced silencing complex (RISC) with the argonaute 2 (AGO2) protein in order to control gene expression through silencing messenger RNAs (mRNA). The ability for a miRNA-mRNA complex to fit into AGO2 and form the RISC is based on the location and characteristics of a central bulge, but the mechanism and interactions that lead to a functional RISC remain unknown. Using available experimental data, we modeled complexes composed of a miRNA (miR-34a) and different mRNA sequences inside of AGO2. The resulting …

My Time As An Albany Journalist, Christian Hince

ALL - Honors Theses

With my graduation in May, I’m pleased to say that my experience in journalism across these past four years has been a well-rounded one, and I hope this collection reflects this well. Some of my work came about from internships, such as my WAMC piece on Central Avenue. Some happened as class assignments, like my article on Troy’s No Fun. Some happened as freelance attempts to make a name for myself (i.e. my Times Union piece) and others were the result of consistent work with the Albany Student Press. My time in the journalism program has exposed me well to …

Roia: An Open-Source Imagej Macro For Region-Of-Interest Creation And Analysis, Teja Rathnam Buddhavarapu

ALL - Honors Theses

For those determined to study disease states, systems, or circuits in vivo, histology is the alpha and omega of our investigations. We often begin and end by confirming the location and extent of our perturbations. Yet, as deeply rooted as it is in our experimental practice, histological analyses have remained largely stagnant. Experimenter drawn regions-of-interest (ROIs), intensity normalizing by eye, and inconsistent output metrics are just some of the limitations of current image analysis pipelines. To address these challenges, I developed RoiA, a FIJI-enabled macro which automatically characterizes ROIs in a provided image and analyzes key metrics across …

Chromosome 7 Microdeletions: A Literature Review, Catherine Davi

ALL - Honors Theses

Microdeletions, deletions of part of a chromosome that are too small to be detected by light microscopy using conventional cytogenetic methods, have become a hot topic for geneticists over the past decade or so. Occurring in around one in every 4000 live births, some of these microdeletions do not allow for a viable offspring, while others have distinctive developmental consequences. Many of the genes on chromosome 7 play a large role in the early development of the head, face, and limbs and more generally on cell growth and division (Bethesda 2022). This research study reviews known microdeletions on the seventh …

Examining Diachronic Use Of Exotic Lithic Material From A Multicomponent Archaeological Site On Newfoundland, Canada, Addison Robbins

ALL - Honors Theses

Newfoundland has been home to several different cultural groups such as the Maritime Archaic, different Paleo-Eskimo groups, the Beothuk, and many others. These cultures are all unique in their own ways and the majority have been documented using the exotic material, Ramah chert. This material is typically found within seabed’s or within deep lakes because of the continuous sediment deposit. The excavation and lab analysis have emphasized the continuous use of this material over time. This can be attributed to several factors such as cultural significance or durability. This paper will mainly touch on the culturally significant aspects because of …

Dear Mama: An Exploration Of Trauma And Black Feminist Healing Practices Through Letter Writing, Bria Nickerson

Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies M.A. Final Projects

This autoethnographic project delves into the multitude of strategies I've employed over the past decade since my mother's passing to confront and heal from my trauma. Through a series of original letters spanning from girlhood to early adulthood, I narrate my journey, delving into the depths of my emotions, thoughts, and coping mechanisms as I navigate through various traumatic experiences. Guided by Black Feminist Autoethnography as its methodology and anchored in Black Feminist Thought as its theoretical framework, this project also explores the profound impact of transgenerational trauma on the psychological well-being of Black women. From enduring slavery and racialized …

The Subordination Of Teaching To Learning: Teacher Adaptability And Awareness, Vanessa Asencio-Trezza

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

ABSTRACT In today’s context of schooling, most teaching is aimed at output, coverage, and high scores which is in direct contrast to what pre-service teachers are taught to cherish — differentiation, academic choice, and student autonomy. However, there is an approach that shows promise in counteracting the tendency to over stress scores and undermine a humanizing approach to teaching and learning. Called the Subordination of Teaching to Learning (SubTLe), this approach potentially alleviates the tension between long established, highly valued learning outcomes and the unavoidable pressures of high stakes testing but has yet to be studied in this context. Founded …

Substance Use & Systems Impact: A Mixed-Methods Community-Based Participatory Action Study, Jordan Dyett

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Individuals, families, and communities who use drugs or have a history of substance use have been highly criminalized, stigmatized, and their perspectives marginalized in research and policy. Furthermore, trajectories of research on this community tend to focus on pathologizing individuals and focus on prevention or abstinence-based outcomes, failing to embrace a broader critique of societal forces that marginalize communities and contribute to substance use. Despite the increase in deaths due to drug toxicity, policy and practice at large have failed to embrace the expertise of those with lived experience using substances, and instead continued to rely on carceral logics to …

Extreme Temperature And Other Environmental Factors On Diabetes Admissions, Donghong Gao

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Background: Although total environmental factors have been linked with adverse health outcomes, the impacts of temperature and other total environmental factors on diabetes-related hospitalizations and emergency department (ED) visits remain inconclusive.Objective: This dissertation aims to Aim 1) test the associations between extreme heat and diabetes hospitalizations in the summer and its transitional months, identify populations vulnerable to extreme heat’s effects, and examine the modification effects of greenness on the heat-diabetes associations in warm months (Chapters 3 and 4); Aim 2) investigate the associations between extreme cold and diabetes hospitalizations in the winter and its transitional months, identify populations vulnerable to …

Von Neumann Algebras Of Thompson-Like Groups From Cloning Systems, Eli Mackenzie Bashwinger

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Let $(G_n)_{n \in \mathbb{N}}$ be a sequence of groups equipped with a so-called $d$-ary cloning system, and denote by $\mathscr{T}_d(G_*)$ the resulting Thompson-like group, which ought to be regarded as a ``Thompson-esque'' limit of the sequence $(G_n)_{n \in \mathbb{N}}$. In this thesis, we record the progress made so far in our studies on the von Neumann algebras of Thompson-like groups arising from $d$-ary cloning systems. For example, we study the inclusion $L(F_d) \subseteq L(\mathscr{T}_d(G_*))$ of group von Neumann algebras, where $F_d$ is the smallest of the Higman-Thompson groups. We prove that if $(G_n)_{n \in \mathbb{N}}$ is equipped with a ``diverse" …

Social Determinants Of Health As A Correlate Of Patient And Clinical Characteristics In Community Mental Health Care, Syed Aajmain

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Background: Social determinants of health (SDOH) are conditions in the environment in which people live and work that influence health risks and outcomes. These include a range of social, economic, psychosocial, and behavioral factors such as food insecurity, hazardous housing, and financial resource strain. Such factors account for variance in numerous health outcomes, including life expectancy and quality of life. Studies on university student populations also demonstrate that unmet SDOH needs are associated with poorer self-assessed general health as well as higher anxiety and depression symptom severity. However, little is known about SDOH in the context of routine outpatient psychotherapy …

Flow Characterization With Acoustic Emission Sensing, Jackson Marsh

Mechanical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Acoustic emissions (AE) allow for non-intrusive sensing into many types of systems. In systems where there is flow of some type, AE is very useful as these types of systems can be characterized in many ways from the collisions or creation of the flow. Correctly setting up the AE system is extremely important. Failure to do so results in imprecision and inaccurate data being collected. Because of this synchronization techniques, sensor configurations, and data acquisition systems must all align. This can be done with off-the-shelf, commercial systems, but this does not allow for customization and the ability to tailor the …

Accounting And Finance Internship Thesis, Peyton Fair

Finance Undergraduate Honors Theses

During the summer of 2023, I had the opportunity to intern for ten weeks at Walmart Inc. in the Accounting and Finance Development Program (AFDP). The AFDP internship provides participants with hands-on training and experience in various areas of accounting and finance within Walmart. Participants work in various business areas across Walmart US, Walmart International, Sam's Club, and Walmart Inc.

In the summer of 2023, there were 38 AFDP interns representing 18 different universities. The AFDP internship provides opportunities for interns to attend networking events, interact with executives, and receive feedback on their performance through evaluations. This program aims to …

The Impact Of Authoritative Parenting Compared To Authoritarian And Permissive Styles On Long-Term Psychological And Behavioral Function Of Offspring., Brooke Washington

The Eleanor Mann School of Nursing Undergraduate Honors Theses

Different parenting styles produce specific traits in offspring that are of direct relation to the chosen parenting style of the household. The goal of this study is to answer the question: What is the impact of authoritative parenting compared to authoritarian and permissive styles on long term psychological and behavioral function of offspring? This systematic review was conducted to collect and analyze studies relating to the long-term psychological and behavioral effects of offspring who were raised in one of the three most common parenting styles practiced: authoritative, authoritarian, and permissive. The authoritative parenting style is classified as establishing a warm, …

Love Vs Duty?: Resisting The Idealized Woman And Subverting The Perennial Choice For Women In Opera, Lindsay Uhrich '24

Honor Scholar Theses

This thesis serves to be an analysis of the stereotypes that women in opera tend to have as well as of common traits or outcomes that these characters experience. While there is discussion on how these traits have been harmful, the idea of opera being a method for these characters to be envoiced in a way that other genres couldn’t be able to do is explored, and is specifically focused on three case studies of women defying the destinies set upon them while still emerging triumphant. The first case mentioned is in the Baroque opera L’incoronazione di Poppea, where the …

The Lottery Colonel Blotto Game With Draws, Jingzhi Liu

Behavioral and Computational Economics (MS) Theses

This study presents a novel exploration of the lottery Colonel Blotto game. This adaptation introduces the possibility of draws or ties, moving beyond the traditional winner-take-all framework. The inclusion of the possibility of a draw allows for a more realistic depiction of contests where players may arbitrarily split the value of a battlefield in the absence of a decisive victory. Our model is characterized by the number of battlefields, battlefield values that may vary across battlefields, but are symmetric across players, the distinct player shares of each battlefield value captured in the event of a draw, the potentially asymmetric budgets …