Digital Commons Network^™

Support For The Us Endangered Species Act Is High And Steady Over The Past Three Decades, John Vucetich, Jeremy T. Bruskotter, Robyn Wilson, L. Mark Elbroch, Adam Feltz, Thomas Offer-Westort

Michigan Tech Publications

Conservation professionals expect increased attempts to weaken the US Endangered Species Act (ESA) during the second Trump administration. As such, it is important to understand Americans’ level of support for the ESA. Prior research indicates that support for the ESA remained consistently strong across four studies conducted over a two-decade period, 1996–2015. The research presented here extends those observations to six studies conducted over a three-decade period, 1996–2025. We find that support of the ESA over that period has remained consistently high, at about 84%, and opposition has remained consistently low, at about 12%. We also report on other trends …

Storytelling In Reappraisal: How Narratives Can Change Emotion, Makabe Aberle

Undergraduate Theses, Capstones, and Recitals

Emotion regulation strategies, including cognitive reappraisal, are essential for maintaining psychological well-being. While prior work has demonstrated the effectiveness of reappraisal and begun to dig into different specific aspects such as the goals and structure of reappraisals, little is known about how the narrative quality of generated reappraisals impacts their success. The present, preregistered study investigated whether the quality of reappraisal narratives is associated with decreases in negative emotion following reappraisal. Participants across two studies (N = 342) wrote about a recent stressor and then reappraised the event by writing a redemption narrative. Narratives were rated for qualities such as …

Sex And Control In Redeemer Georgia, Anthony Michael Kreis

Georgia State University Law Review

This Essay explores the interplay of history, law, and morality behind the first abortion law in Georgia. Examining the philosophical underpinnings of liberty and equality as articulated in Georgia’s constitutional history through time, this Essay highlights the moral contradictions inherent in the legal frameworks of Reconstruction Georgia. The origin of Georgia’s 1876 abortion law contains multitudes—rooted in race-based contestations for political power, the sociological evolution of medical practice, and evolving attitudes on individual rights. At times, White elites used abortion to attack Yankee culture and stir up racist fears about moral contagion associated with Radical Republicans. To this end, when …

How To Start (Or Stop) A War On Crime: A Conceptual Cookbook, Brandon E. Beck

Georgia State University Law Review

Beginning in the early 1990s, the Executive Branch began an era of enforcement of federal firearms crime that was different in kind and degree from the prior seventy-five years. The federal crime policies of the 1990s and 2000s led to a significant increase both in the total number of federal firearms prosecutions and in how often mandatoryminimum statutes were charged. But later, in the 2010s and 2020s, there were times when the number of firearms prosecutions stabilized, and the number of mandatory-minimum sentences decreased. This Article seeks to use federal firearms prosecutions, in this era of enforcement, as a lens …

Medication Abortion And The Mails: The Ghost Of Anthony Comstock Rides Again?, Lars Noah

Georgia State University Law Review

Mail-order dispensing of the prescription drug mifepristone has become the latest flashpoint in this country’s long-running debate over abortion access. It also has brought back from the dead one of the oldest federal statutes to address that contentious subject. In their fight to limit access to a drug approved by the FDA one quarter of a century ago, abortion opponents have rediscovered the Comstock Act. Although amended on several occasions since 1873, Congress never managed to repeal or clarify its ambiguous language relating to abortion. On its narrowest reading, this provision would have no impact whatsoever on access to mifepristone; …

Taxing Morality: How Tax Law Defines Wealth, Justice, And Fairness, Doron Narotzki, Tamir Shanan

Georgia State University Law Review

Tax law is more than a fiscal framework; it is a moral compass that shapes society's values, governing who bears the burden and who reaps the benefits. Hidden within the tax code are moral judgments on wealth, privilege, responsibility, and fairness, making taxation one of the most profound expressions of social ethics. This Article argues that the tax system is not just a mechanism for raising revenue but is, and should continue to be, a legal tool for enforcing collective moral decisions about justice and equity. As the wealth gap widens and public discourse intensifies around tax fairness, the question …

What's Freedom Got To Do With It? Occupational Freedom And The Illusion Of Choice, Bojan Perovic

Georgia State University Law Review

This Article critically examines the concept of occupational freedom, arguing that the legal right to choose and pursue a profession, as enshrined in many constitutional systems, remains largely theoretical for vast segments of the population. While legal frameworks recognize occupational freedom, socioeconomic barriers, systemic discrimination, and cultural norms continue to impede genuine access to professions. Using historical examples like the exclusion of women from the legal profession or racial segregation under apartheid, this Article illustrates how law can act as both an instrument of oppression and a tool for progress.

Through a comparative analysis of case law from Germany, South …

An Introduction To Legal Moralism, Douglas Husak

Georgia State University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Enhancing Water Scarcity Resilience In Egypt Through Machine Learning-Driven Phenological Crop Mapping And Water Use Efficiency Analysis, Surendra Maharjan, Wenzhao Li, Shahryar Fazli, Aqil Tariq, Rejoice Thomas, Cyril Rakovski, Hesham El-Askary

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Agriculture forms the backbone of Egypt’s economy, with the Nile Valley and Delta serving as key production zones for crops like wheat, rice, and clover. However, the sector faces mounting pressure from water scarcity, as it depends almost entirely on the Nile for irrigation, making it necessary to map major crops for assessing Water Use Efficiency (WUE) and informing agricultural planning. In this study, we used machine learning (ML) techniques—specifically Support Vector Machine (SVM) to time-series phenological data and optical indices (Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI), Bare Soil Index (BSI), Land Surface Water Index (LSWI), Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), and …

The Preliminary-Hearing Swindle: A Crime Against Procedure, Michael D. Cicchini

Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review

It is incredibly easy for a prosecutor to file a complaint, thus setting the criminal litigation machinery in motion. But in felony cases, defendants are entitled to a preliminary hearing which serves as a check on prosecutorial power. The “prelim” is an adversarial hearing at which the prosecutor must present evidence and call witnesses who are subject to cross-examination. The prelim’s purpose is to test whether there is probable cause to believe the defendant committed a felony, thus preventing “hasty, malicious, improvident and oppressive prosecutions.”

Nearly all states allow prosecutors to use hearsay, with limitations, at the prelim. Given that, …

Artificial Intelligence And The Self-Represented Inventor, Brenda M. Simon

Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review

Lack of access to competent legal representation is pervasive throughout the justice system. Unfortunately, the patent system is no exception. Self-represented inventors are far less likely to obtain patents than those with legal representation. Increasing access to artificial intelligence (AI) can mitigate some of the disadvantages of self-representation, but using AI will also raise new challenges. To the extent that AI systems can help self-represented inventors, they can begin to address one of the underlying causes of the patent gap—lack of access to high-quality legal services. While AI is no substitute for legal representation, it can be incorporated into the …

To Educate A Mockingbird: California’S Commitment To Inclusive Education, Nicholas Mckenna

Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review

Education in the United States has long been a battleground where state authority and individual liberties intersect, shaping what and how students learn. California enacted Assembly Bill 1078 (AB 1078) to counter restrictive trends on classroom discussions about race and gender. The bill mandates that instructional materials reflect the state’s diverse heritage, which has raised critical questions about state power in public education.

This Note argues that AB 1078 aligns with and reinforces the Supreme Court’s vision of public education as a space for the free exchange of diverse ideas. By embodying antitotalitarian principles, AB 1078 ensures that public schools …

Freedom To Misinform: The First Amendment Victory Against California’S Medical Speech Law, Brennan O'Boyle

Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review

In 2022, California was grappling with the COVID-19 pandemic. Heightened political polarization and the unmitigated spread of misinformation was straining state and federal governments’ ability to rein in the pandemic through collective action. The Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB) issued a warning that doctors spreading misinformation were violating their ethical and professional responsibility to accurately inform their patients. In response, California passed AB 2098, classifying COVID-19 misinformation in the patient-doctor context as unprofessional conduct subject to stiff penalties, including suspension or loss of the offender’s medical license. The law was quickly challenged in federal district court on content-neutrality and …

Together We Thrive: A Co-Production Toolkit For People With Ms And Care Providers, E. Chandlee Bryan

Dartmouth College Master’s Theses

Nearly a million people in the U.S. have Multiple Sclerosis (MS), a progressive neurological disease. People with MS (PwMS), are more likely to have a decreased quality of life (QoL) and are at greater risk for unemployment, loneliness, and depression than people without MS. As MS symptoms can include fatigue, balance issues, mobility problems, and changes to bladder and bowel function, managing MS requires patient engagement that includes coordination of care between neurology, primary care, and specialists. This thesis was researched and written by a PwMS who has worked in collaboration with her neurologist, Dr. Andrew D. Smith III, and …

The Magdala Moms Of La Jolla, Rebecca Shepard

Dartmouth College Master’s Theses

The Magdala Moms of La Jolla is a satirical novel set at The Magdala School, an elite Christian academy in La Jolla, California, where social status, curated faith, and community performance are indistinguishable. The story follows Mitzi Madigan, a brash, ambitious mother whose carefully constructed persona hides a troubling past. Her world begins to unravel when Caroline—a single mother working in construction—is granted a scholarship for her daughter, Emma, to attend Magdala.

As Emma enters the private school’s polished social ecosystem, she begins to uncover the secrets buried beneath the sun-drenched surface. The Mag Moms, a clique of hyper-polished, scripture-quoting …

Evolutionary Dynamics Of Artificial Agents: Exploration And Learning In Games, Brian Mintz

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

The natural world abounds with examples of complex behavior in humans and many other species. Evolutionary game theory is a powerful mathematical framework to understand the origins of many such behaviors like cooperation. Since these behaviors are often selected against initially, understanding why they are so widespread has been a longstanding question. Rather than assuming agents' rationality, like in traditional game theory, this approach studies the mutation and selection of strategies themselves. However most behavior is neither perfectly rational nor entirely determined by genetics. This dissertation works to bridge the gap between these two perspectives by analyzing models where individuals …

Gift To School Of Education Honors Mississippi Ties, Andy Belt

University of Mississippi News

OXFORD, Miss. – A new gift to the University of Mississippi School of Education honors a donor whose legacy to the college and state run deep.

Correlation Between Clinical Classification And Genetic Analysis Of Familial Hypercholesterolemia In Premature Coronary Artery Disease In A Cohort Of Egyptian Patients, Eman Ramadan

Pharmacy

Background: Familial Hypercholesterolemia (FH) is a major risk factor for premature Coronary Artery Disease (CAD). Genetic testing is the gold standard for FH diagnosis. The purpose of this Observational Analytical Cross-sectional study was to estimate the proportion of genetically confirmed Familial Hypercholesterolemia in Patients with premature Coronary Artery Disease in a cohort of Egyptian patients.

Methods: Next generation sequencing (NGS) was conducted for 7 genes (LDLR, PCSK9, APOB, APOE, ABCG5, ABCG8 and LDLRAP1) commonly associated with FH in 94 patients with Premature CAD from 2 tertiary hospitals in Cairo and Alexandria, Egypt. Individuals were clinically assessed using the Dutch Lipid …

Great Work Is Done While We Sleep, Julie Wildschut

University Faculty Publications and Creative Works

No abstract provided.

Evaluation Of Ecostress Collection 2 Evapotranspiration Products: Strengths And Uncertainties For Evapotranspiration Modeling, Zoe Amie Pierrat, Adam J. Purdy, Gregory Halverson, Joshua B. Fisher, Kanishka Mallick, Madeleine Pascolini-Campbell, Youngryel Rye, Martha C. Anderson, Claire Villanueva-Weeks, Margaret C. Johnson, Brenna Hatch, Evan Davis, Yun Yang, Kerry Cawse-Nicholson

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

The ECOsystem Spaceborne Thermal Radiometer Experiment on Space Station (ECOSTRESS) collects thermal observations from the International Space Station to support evapotranspiration (ET) research at fine spatial resolutions (70 m × 70 m). Initial ET from ECOSTRESS Collection 1 was used in scientific research and applications, though subsequent analyses identified areas for improvement. This study outlines updates to ECOSTRESS Collection 2 ET and presents an accuracy assessment of ET and auxiliary variables validated against in situ data from AmeriFlux. Key updates in Collection 2 include use of four independent model estimates of instantaneous latent energy (LE) and improved auxiliary forcing data. …

Emotional Eating Behaviors And Parental Feeding Practices In Three-Year-Old Children And Their Association With Body Composition One Year Later, Keely Wright, Kenia Rivera, Elysia Poggi Davis

Undergraduate Theses, Capstones, and Recitals

Emotional eating – eating in response to negative emotions regardless of hunger – is an obesogenic trait that often develops in childhood and remains a habit through adulthood. Greater emotional eating is associated with a higher body mass index (BMI; kg/m2) in 7-12-year-old children (Webber et al., 2009). However, few studies have examined the relations between emotional eating and weight gain in preschool-aged children. Moreover, there is limited research on parental feeding practices and weight gain in preschool-aged children. The current work investigated the association of emotional eating behaviors during an emotional eating task in three-year-old children with change in …

History In Motion: Applying The Archival Collections Of Frank And Lillian Gilbreth’S Time And Motion Studies To Business Education, Annette Bochenek

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

No abstract provided.

Podcast Resources For Entrepreneurs, Annette Bochenek

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

No abstract provided.

Artistic Exploration Of Synesthesia, Lexi James

Undergraduate Theses, Capstones, and Recitals

This thesis investigates synesthesia as both a neurological condition and a broader sensory perception shaped by culture, cognition, and creative practice. Although not a synesthete in the medical definition of the condition, I explore how sensory overlaps particularly between sound, sight, touch, taste, and smell can be simulated and explored through art. Through historical research, theoretical analysis, and personal experimentation, I examine synesthesia as a potential extension of universal perceptual pathways rather than an isolated anomaly. Drawing from semiotic theories by Ferdinand de Saussure and Charles Sanders Peirce, the project considers how meaning is made through sensory signification and how …

Urban-Rural Divide In Inequality’S Impact On Substance Abuse, Jonathan E. Flores

Undergraduate Theses, Capstones, and Recitals

This thesis focuses on investigating the relationship between income inequality, measured through the Gini coefficient, and drug addiction, proxied through substance-related mortality. Specifically, this thesis focuses on how these dynamics vary across rural and urban counties in the United States, using population size as a proxy. County-level data from 2016 to 2020 were collected through both the CDC and the Census Bureau and subsequently analyzed using Stata, with crude death rates from drug and alcohol causes serving as a function of the Gini coefficient, labor force participation, racial composition, and other socioeconomic indicators. Through a quadratic version of the model, …

Basic Theory And Implementations Of Quantum Error Correction, Derek Rodriguez

Undergraduate Theses, Capstones, and Recitals

The introduction of quantum computing has presented algorithmic solutions to computationally difficult challenges that are far more efficient than those of classical computers. These algorithms leverage the properties of quantum mechanics to manipulate the quantum properties of subatomic particles, requiring immense precision and stability. Current quantum hardware, however, is too noisy and introduces too many errors for these algorithms to be useful in practice, necessitating the use of error correction algorithms. This field survey seeks to introduce various principles of quantum mechanics relevant to quantum computing and quantum error correction (QEC), detail the implementation and motivations of a basic QEC …

Narrating The New Cold War: Investigating Chinese Cyber Propaganda And Sino-American Tensions On Bilibili, William G. Highfill

Undergraduate Theses, Capstones, and Recitals

This thesis examines Bilibili, a Chinese video-sharing platform originally known for its anime, comics, and gaming (ACG) content, as a critical site for the formation and circulation of nationalist discourse in the context of a “New Cold War” between the United States and China. As ideological rivalry increasingly shifts from traditional state media and military posturing to decentralized digital platforms, Bilibili offers a unique case study in how propaganda evolves in participatory online spaces. Through a combination of digital ethnography and discourse analysis, this research explores how Bilibili’s algorithmic infrastructure, comment culture (弹幕), and remix-oriented design allow users to not …

Analyzing Human - Nonhuman Primate Conflict Mitigation Techniques In Mto Wa Mbu, Northern Tanzania, Lil Adams

Undergraduate Theses, Capstones, and Recitals

Human-wildlife conflict is a widespread challenge faced by those living in regular contact with wildlife that can have profound impacts on livelihood outcomes for humans, wildlife, and their shared environment (Barua et al., 2013; Blackie, 2023). Human – non-human primate conflict is particularly crucial due to primates’ high capacity to live among human populations (Chapman & Chapman, 1990; Alberts & Altmann, 2006; Reader et al., 2011; Sinha & Vijayakrishnan, 2017), and is currently on the rise due to increasing contact between human and non-human primates (Hockings, 2016; Uddin et al., 2020). To characterize and analyze techniques currently being used to …

Tensions In The Arctic: Avoiding Escalation, Emma Loeber

Undergraduate Theses, Capstones, and Recitals

The Arctic has long been considered a place of peace and scientific cooperation largely unaffected by international tensions. In the past decade, however, climate change has made the Northern Sea Route (NSR) increasingly navigable, and its status as an important trade route in a time of recurring great power rivalry has increased tensions in the Arctic. Coupled with the Arctic’s strategic location for both Russia and the United States, this has led to the militarization of the region and fears of a security dilemma that could lead to escalation and conflict. This paper will focus on the eight Arctic states …

Simplicial Decomposition And Realization, Matthew Ellison

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

In simplicial decomposition, we define two invariants --- V_Z and V_Q --- which represent notions of integral and rational volume of a certain class of simplicial complexes. We prove V_Z and V_Q are additive under disjoint union and connected sum, and investigate `integrality gaps' between the two quantities. We apply the theory to establish a conjecture of Sleator, Thurston, and Tarjan on tetrahedral fillings, and, as a corollary, obtain a new proof of Pournin's 2012 result on the diameter of the associahedron. In simplicial realization, we provide practical sufficient conditions and computer code to prove the existence of Euclidean embeddings …