Digital Commons Network^™

Genealib Archive 2022-05, Genealib

GENEALIB Archive

No abstract provided.

The Spiritual Care Protocol: Developing Informed Responses To End-Of-Life Concerns, Gabriel Fisher

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

This thesis addresses the understanding and practice of spiritual care in a nonprofit hospice. The identified problem this project seeks to resolve is a lack of a protocol to continually assess the spiritual concerns of patients and families on service with this organization. The purpose of this project intervention is to develop a protocol document that assesses spiritual concerns and helps members of an interdisciplinary team offer more informed responses to spiritual care needs. The project has multiple intents in that it will also help address a gap in organizational awareness and seek to enhance current care practices and understandings. …

Designing A Program To Train Elders To Respond To #Metoo Experiences Of Adult Females In A Church Context, Jana H. Unruh

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

This project intervention explores resolution of systemic issues of church-based sexual harassment, abuse, and violence, referred to as #MeToo, through design of a training program for elders. As theological foundation for the project, the Gospel of Luke frames positive approaches modern church leaders can align with in the quest for solutions to #MeToo. The Good Samaritan parable and the story of Mary and Martha extract valuable lessons for church elders addressing sexual harassment, abuse, and violence experiences of adult women. In Luke, we find fresh understanding for questions of #MeToo through the highly relevant concept of “neighbor.” Luke will …

Developing Practices Within The Lord’S Supper That Develop Central Identity At Queen City Church Of Christ, Ryan Russell

Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations

This project was designed to meet a need at the Queen City Church of Christ (QCC) for developing intentional practices around the Lord’s Supper for forming a central identity in a diverse community. The scope of this project focuses on the project group’s ability to develop practices based on the theology of the Lord’s Supper, biblical teaching, engaging in practices of spiritual formation as a group, and their observations of Lord’s Supper practices in other Christian traditions. Paul’s first letter to the church in Corinth provides the textual context for the discussion of the role the Lord’s Supper plays within …

You Are What You Turk: Empirically Testing An Elance Work Design Model, Traci Megan Bricka

Psychology Dissertations - Archive

As the completion of short-term tasks on online work platforms such as Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk; i.e., eLancing) continues to increase in popularity, it is important to establish an understanding of how traditional work design principles manifest in a digital, transient workforce (Colbert et al., 2016). Therefore, the present effort aimed to do so by empirically testing aspects of Schroeder et al.’s (2021) eLance work design theoretical model through the lens of the Attraction-Selection-Attrition (ASA) model (Schneider, 1987). Data were collected from 325 MTurk workers to examine the mechanisms by which eLancers are attracted to tasks with specific work characteristics, …

The Influence Of Dark And Positive Personality Traits On Dyadic And Individual Creativity, Shaikha Salman Aldousari

Psychology Dissertations - Archive

The present study not only replicates Jonason et al.'s (2017) examination of the influence of negative personality traits—the Dark Triad of Machiavellianism, Narcissism, and Psychopathy—upon Creativity Valence; but expands this investigation to examine the influence of positive personality traits—the Light Triad of Kantianism, Humanism and Faith in Humanity, plus General Trust and Prosocial Motivation —between dyads. Specifically, I examine the influence of an individual’s negative and positive personality traits on the novelty, fluency, and valence (positive and negative) of ideas, based on a sample of 208 individuals (104 dyads) recruited through Prolific. Analyses reveal Machiavellianism as the only personality trait …

Does Experiencing And Witnessing Violence Negatively Impact Delinquency Throughout The Life Course?, Treshure Dene Jones

Criminology & Criminal Justice Theses - Archive

At some point in an individual’s life, there will be some type of exposure to violence whether direct or indirect. Also described as victimization, this takes place when there is a change in three main assumptions: belief in personal invulnerability, the perception of the world as meaningful, and self-positivity (Janoff-Bulman and Frieze, 1983). There is no specific answer for the cause of delinquency, but many factors that work together (Shader, 2001). The risk factors for delinquency and victimization have been shown to be the same creating an overlap. This study focuses on whether witnessing or experiencing violence can result in …

Evaluating And Addressing The Transportation Challenges Of Small-Scale Farmers And Ranchers In Regional Food Systems, Narjes Sadeghiamirshahidi

Industrial, Manufacturing, and Systems Engineering Dissertations - Archive

During the last 20 years, there has been a significant increase in US consumers’ interest in local food. At the same time, there is substantial potential demand for crops produced by local small and mid-size farmers and ranchers whose market channels are short distance distributions Although there is a variety of definitions for local food, it often refers to direct-to-customer market channels for farmers and ranchers, including farmers’ markets and Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), as well as distribution through local businesses like restaurants, grocery stores, as well as local institutions such as hospitals and schools. However, small and mid-size farmers …

Leveraging Ai And Supply Chain Technologies With Thermal Imaging And Telemedicine For Early Detection And Prevention Of Covid-19 And Respiratory Infections In Urm Communities, Gohar Azeem

Industrial, Manufacturing, and Systems Engineering Dissertations - Archive

The underserved population could be at risk during the times of crisis, unless there is strong involvement from government agencies such as local and state Health departments and federal Center for Disease Control (CDC). The COVID-19 pandemic was a crisis of different proportion, creating a different type of burden on government agencies. Vulnerable communities including the elderly populations and communities of color have been especially hard hit by this pandemic. This forced these agencies to change their strategies and supply chains to support all populations receiving therapeutics. The National Science Foundation (NSF Award # 2028612) funded this research to help …

Machine Learning Methods For Statistical Analysis And Representation Learning On Neuroimaging Data, Fan Yang

Computer Science and Engineering Dissertations - Archive

With the recent advance and widespread adoption of imaging technological innovations, clinical practitioner and scientists can easily acquire and store a large amount of various neuroimaging modalities, such as Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI), Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) and Positron Emission Tomography (PET), etc. These novel imaging data sources cover a rich amount of factors that influence patients' cognitive health, offer an objective view of patients at unprecedented multi-resolution for the understanding of brain structure and function, and have the significant potential to improve healthcare by aiding better decision-making in diagnosing, monitoring and treating diseases. Machine Learning …

Using Antipatterns To Improve Database Code Fragments, And Utilizing Knowledge Graphs And Nlp Patterns To Extract Standardized Data Element Names, Bader Alshemaimri

Computer Science and Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Database code fragments exist in software systems by using SQL as the stan- dard language for relational databases. Traditionally, developers bind databases as backends to software systems for supporting user applications. However, these bind- ings are low-level code and implemented to persist user data, so Object Relational Mapping (ORM) frameworks take place to abstract database access details. These approaches are prone to problematic database code fragments that negatively im- pact the quality of software systems. In the first part of the dissertation, we survey problematic database code fragments in the literature and examine antipatterns that occur in low-level database access …

Microfluidic Flow Focusing Platforms For Optofluidic Droplet Laser Development, Chen Zhang

Electrical Engineering Dissertations - Archive

ABSTRACT: Optofluidic droplet lasers have been developed for different applications in biomedical sciences, such as biosensing, cell tracking, tissue imaging, on-chip spectroscopy, and flow cytometry. Utilizing different generation methods, droplet lasers can be categorized as either static droplet lasers or droplet lasers on the flow. Static droplet lasers, which are supported by a surface or levitated by an external force, can be optically probed for an extended period of time, and thus enabling continuous monitoring of the lasing emission. However, static droplet lasers suffer from low-throughput generation, large size distribution, and poor reproducibility. In contrast, droplet lasers on the flow …

Power Allocation And Massive Mimo Channel Modeling For 5g Wireless Communications, Zhangliang Chen

Electrical Engineering Dissertations - Archive

To meet the demand for wireless communication transmission rate to reach a thousand times of the existing system in 2021, the fifth-generation (5G) mobile communication system was developed. Compared with Long-Term Evolution (LTE), the 5G mobile communication needs to be transmitted in wireless breakthrough innovation in technology to achieve the goal of ten times increase in spectrum efficiency and power efficiency. As a time series analysis tool based on vector autoregression, Granger causal analysis originated in the field of econometrics, and its staged generalized transfer entropy (TE) based on conditional co-information in information theory has been widely used in recent …

Camp Wolters: A History Of The Us Army's Relationship With Mineral Wells, Texas, Stacy E. Croushorn

History Theses - Archive

This thesis documents the Army's contributions to the town of Mineral Wells, Texas by locating the army camp of Camp Wolters there during WWII.

Investigation Into The Relationship Between Posture And Psychology: The Psychological Ramifications Of Forward Head And Rounded Shoulder Posture, Samuel Thomas Lauman

Kinesiology Dissertations - Archive

Embodied cognition speaks to the notion that the mind and body are inherently linked, and directly influence one another. Nonverbal communication experts hold the thought that sustaining chronic postures can impact an individual’s psychological disposition and vice versa. Therefore, the potential to intervene on these postures from a musculoskeletal rehabilitation perspective provides the opportunity to improve not only an individual’s posture, but also their psychological state. Forward head posture (FHP) and rounded shoulder posture (RSP) are common postural adaptations that occur from musculoskeletal dysfunction, and often lead to acute and chronic changes that can be a precursor to etiological pathologies. …

Investigation Of The Cellular Uptake And Cytotoxicity Of Ruthenium(Ii) Polypyridyl Complexes As A Function Of Lipophilicity, Matthew Guerrero

Chemistry & Biochemistry Theses - Archive

Ru(II) polypyridyl complexes have been one of the focal points of investigation for inorganic anti-cancer drugs, as they are robust enough to remain chemically intact in vivo and many show potent cytotoxicty. In particular, the RPC [Ru(dip)3]2+, where dip is 4,7-diphenyl-1,10-phenanthroline, is noted for its high cytotoxicity (IC50 ~2-5 uM) across a broad spectrum of cancer cell lines and more recently has been implicated as targeting microtubules, which is an unusual target for metal-based drugs. While the cellular uptake for [Ru(dip)3]Cl2 is among the highest seen for RPCs, its solubility in water or buffer is limited and problematic. In order …

Investigation Of F420-Dependent Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase Variants Using Ph Profiles And Stopped-Flow Spectrometric Ligand-Binding Methods, Ana Laura Alvarez

Chemistry & Biochemistry Theses - Archive

F420-dependent glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (FGD) from Mycobacteria tuberculosis, catalyzes a reaction the conversion of glucose-6-phosphate (G6P) to 6-phosphogluconolactone using the oxidized F420 cofactor, which is reduced to F420H2. The reaction is important within M. tuberculosis, the cause of tuberculosis disease (TB) due to its health relevance for treatment of multiple drug resistant and extreme drug resistant strains of M. tuberculosis. TB affects millions of people worldwide, and although treatable, multiple drug resistant and extreme drug resistant forms of TB adds strain on the current generation of drugs. Since this enzyme is not found in humans, is an ideal drug target. A …

Sexually Transmitted Diseases Consultation And Education For Adolescents And Young Adults, Maryrose Chinedu Obidiaku

Nursing Dissertations - Archive

Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) have drastically increased in recent years nationwide and worldwide. Adolescents and young adults (AYAs) ages 15-24 make up just over one-quarter of the sexually active populace. Additionally, AYAs account for half of the 20 million new sexually transmitted infections in the United States. Compared with older adults, sexually active adolescents aged 15–19 years and young adults aged 20–24 years are at higher risk of getting STDs. Lack of knowledge of risk and protective factors and high-risk sexual health practices and behaviors significantly contribute to AYAs' STD acquisition. Hence, increasing STDs awareness and prevention is essential in …

Evaluating Headstarting As A Conservation Strategy For Anegada Rock Iguanas (Cyclura Pinguis), Kelly Allison Bradley

Biology Theses - Archive

In an effort to combat the current extinction crisis, conservation biologists have developed a diverse set of tools, including conservation physiology. This scientific discipline applies physiological concepts and tools to generate conservation solutions for a broad range of species. The Anegada Rock Iguana (Cyclura pinguis) is a Critically Endangered species native to Anegada, British Virgin Islands. Feral cats depredate hatchlings within months of emergence, drastically reducing recruitment and population growth. By the 1990s, the population had declined by 80%. A headstart program was initiated in 1997 to combat this threat and increase the population. Wild collected hatchlings are reared in …

Petrophysical Studies On Woodford Shale In Oklahoma And Wolfcamp Shale In Texas: A Multiple-Approach Methodology, Chen Zhao

Earth & Environmental Sciences Dissertations - Archive

The successful development of oil and gas from unconventional reservoirs in the United States proves the high petroleum potential that shale rock reserves. Petrophysical studies on shale rocks are an important part of reservoir characterization. Petrophysical studies investigate the basic properties and pore structures of the shale rock, including porosity, density, pore size distribution, specific surface area, wettability, pore connectivity, and permeability, to understand the storage and movement of oil and gas in shale rocks. Multiple experimental approaches were applied onto both outcrop and well-core samples from several U.S. shale plays. A range of complementary methodologies of X-ray diffraction, polarized …

Global Mapping Of Protein-Nucleic Acid Interaction Of The Rle Line R2bm, Dhamala Santosh

Biology Theses - Archive

The R2 Long Interspersed Nucleotide Elements (LINEs) is a widely distributed site specific non-LTR retrotransposons that integrates exclusively into host genome’s 28s rRNA genes and replicate by a process called Target Primed Reverse Transcription (TPRT) which is a “copy-out, copy-in” mechanism whereby element protein binds to the mRNA from which they are translated, forming ribonucleic acid protein particles (RNPs). The investigation of nucleic acid-protein interactions using chemical modification of surface amino acid residues on a protein in the presence and absence of nucleic acids is a relatively new application/technique in the field of Mass Spectrometry and particularly significant in studying …

Impact Of Legislative Policy On Young Women’S Breast Cancer Health, Vane Omosa

Nursing Dissertations - Archive

Breast cancer is the second most common type of cancer among women in the United States (CDC, 2021). Approximately 12% of US women will be diagnosed with breast cancer during their lifetime and 3% will die from invasive breast cancer (American Cancer Society, 2021). It is one of the leading causes of cancer deaths in women, with an estimated 42,000 women dying annually in the US. Young Black women have lower survival rates, higher risks of metastatic recurrence, and a higher mortality rate (Young Survival Coalition, 2021). This quality improvement project utilized retrospective data to examine the impact of the …

Shared Decision-Making Decision Aid Intervention To Improve Diabetes Medication Adherence, David Baba

Nursing Dissertations - Archive

A quasi-experimental study was conducted to investigate the effectiveness of a shared-decision-making (SDM) intervention using a decision aid (DA) with medication adherence and social support of African American/Black adults with type 2 diabetes. Orem's self-care theory and self-care deficit theory were the guiding frameworks to conceptually define and explain medication adherence as a self-care demand and shared decision making and social support as conditioning factors for promoting medication adherence. The medication adherence and social support levels of 31 men and women with diabetes were measured before and three months after implementing the SDM intervention. Participants' hemoglobin A1c test results were …

Surface Flashover Under Various Surface Conditions, Bradley A. Hannum

Electrical Engineering Theses - Archive

Electrical insulators are critical components used in every high voltage application whether it is operated continuously or in a pulsed mode. Bulk dielectric breakdown and surface flashover must be prevented in all use cases, especially those that occur in polluted environments. Though electrical standards have been written as a guide to prevent insulator surface flashover, such as Underwriters Laboratories (UL) 840, they are not directly applicable to applications where size and weight are critical. UL 840 experimental design is vague, does not consider all environments, and is written primarily with the electric power utilities in mind. The research presented here …

Charles Griffes's Piano Sonata As Emblematic Of Mature Style, Jacob A. Browning

Music Theses - Archive

Composer Charles Tomlinson Griffes has had many labels placed upon him as an early figure of 20th century music in America, most of which place much weight on his American nationality within the context of musical trends outside of the continent. Recognized most prominently for his impressionistic piano compositions, Charles Griffes had multiple periods of stylistic influence that are less-often discussed. His later works are experimental and modernist in nature, and as lesser-known works from a lesser-covered composer it is uncommon for scholars to cover them. The music of Griffes has much importance to both the history of American art …

An Investigation Of The Texas All-State Process, Texas Honor Orchestra Process With Regard To Title I And Students In Urban School Districts From 2010-2020, And The Effect On The Social Emotional Learning Of These Students, Lacy Mccoy

Music Theses - Archive

The Texas Music Educators Association annually recognizes the outstanding student musicians and selected school ensembles in the state through the All-State and Honor Orchestra processes. Students selected for the All-State Orchestras are from high schools from around the state. Ensembles chosen to be one of the Honor Orchestras come from both junior high and high schools. Selection for these ensembles comes after months of hard work on the part of both students and teachers, as well as a rigorous selection process. The purpose of this thesis was to investigate the equity of these processes as they pertain to Title I …

Educational Attainment Of Mexican American Immigrants: A Longitudinal Analysis In Six Texas Gateways, Ana G. Mariscal

Sociology & Anthropology Theses - Archive

This paper analyzes data from the Integrated Public Use Microdata Series to examine trends in educational attainment from 2000 to 2018 in six Texas gateway cities: El Paso, San Antonio, McAllen, Dallas Fort Worth, Houston, and Austin. Multilevel analyses explore three variables: generational cohort, citizenship status, and English proficiency and how they relate to years of education. Results demonstrate an overall increase in education, placing the 1.75 generation at the top of attainment along with the 2nd generation, and sometimes surpassing the latter in almost every gateway, while the 1.25 generation is achieving the lowest levels. Results also show that …

The Frames And Tactics Of The Women's Representation Movement, Desiree Alvarez

Sociology & Anthropology Theses - Archive

Studies of social movements have yet to examine the modern women’s political representation movement, a social movement industry made up of nonprofit organizations, foundations, activist groups, and political action committees aiming to create gender parity within U.S. political systems. Using in-depth interviews with fifteen leaders of organizations within the women’s representation movement, this study reveals multi-faceted dynamics at play when tactics and frames are developed within organizations of this social movement industry. Findings reveal that frame and tactical development are influenced by several key factors, such as: cohort collaboration, funders, an established hierarchy of old versus new social movement organizations …

Sexual Consent: Conceptualizations, Practices, And Education Among Texas High School Students, Erica Joy Favor

Sociology & Anthropology Theses - Archive

This study investigates high school students’ understanding of sexual consent and healthy relationships. While many studies have investigated practices, concepts, and definitions of consent among college-aged students, this research focuses on adolescents. How do teenagers define consent? With the rise of the #metoo movement, has awareness of consent and its practice changed? This qualitative study interviewed fifteen high school students in Texas, ranging in age from 15 to 18 years old. The results of this study are clear: high school students participate in hookup culture despite a lack of education and curriculum of consent practices. This research also sheds light …

The Evolution Of Neurosensory Structures: Evaluating Ecological Drivers Of Brain And Eye Size Variation, Kaitlyn J. Howell

Biology Dissertations - Archive

Neurosensory structures (i.e., brain and eye size) vary extensively across taxa. The evolution of large neurosensory structures has long been an area of interest for scientists, but focus has largely been placed on macroevolutionary patterns at or above the species level. Few studies have investigated the role contrasting ecological factors play in the evolution of such structures within species. My dissertation examines 1) how divergent ecological pressures, particularly predation and competition, drive evolutionary shifts in brain and eye size within species and across sexes, and 2) why such variation evolves, particularly if larger brains drive shifts in behavior and fitness. …