Digital Commons Network^™

Economic Viability Of Weed Management Strategies In High-Tunnel Tomato, Gracie Morrison

Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Cost-effective weed suppression is an important consideration for tomato growers. Growers often choose methods which minimize hand labor, as hand weeding can be prohibitively expensive. This project determined economic viability of high tunnel tomatoes treated with several methods of weed control, both organic and chemical. These methods included: 2-week hand weeding, 1-week hand weeding, preemergent, straw, landscape fabric, and untreated weedy control plots. These treatments were applied to randomized blocks in a high-tunnel. Weeding, planting, and harvest were all timed to determine labor and material costs of weed management strategy implementation. After harvest, marketable yield was weighed to determine revenue. …

Comparison Of Carbon Footprints Of School Lunches In Dangriga, Belize, And Northwest Arkansas, Lauren Greenwood

Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

The original purpose of this study was to investigate differences in carbon footprints of school lunches by comparing a school in Arkansas, USA, and a school in Belize. Due to complications imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the purpose was revised to gathering preliminary data about the school lunch program at a school in Northwest Arkansas; data were to be used to estimate CO2-equivalent emissions for cafeteria energy use, meal ingredients from the two most popular meals served, and food transportation at the last point in the supply chain (food service delivery to school). This study highlights the intersection of food …

Consumer Preferences For Lab Grown Meat: The Effect Of Information On Consumer Choice, Aryn Blumenberg

Food Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

Global population growth and increased meat demand present challenges for the agricultural industry to produce meat sustainably. In-vitro meat (IVM) is an alternative that could reduce negative impacts associated with livestock production. The goal of this study was to examine consumers’ preferences for IVM. A choice experiment was created with twelve choice tasks that varied across five attributes: production method (IVM or conventional), carbon trust label, organic label, animal welfare label, and price. 1,120 US consumers were randomly assigned to one of four information treatments, differing by information presented regarding IVM: 1) neutral (baseline), 2) positive, 3) negative, and 4) …

Using Community Science To Assess The Effect Of Wing Pattern And Weather On Butterfly Behavior, Abbigail Merrill

Animal Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

Signaling in insects is used as communication and for attraction of mates. The physical appearance of the insect as well as conditions such as weather can play a role in visual signaling, by influencing the wavelengths of light available, and subsequent signal detection. We do not know, however, whether signals butterflies present broadly correlate with how they behave. In this study, we looked at the wing patterns and behavior of butterflies in Northwest Arkansas over a 3.5-year period to assess the relationship between wing pattern, weather, and behavior. We used observational data collected by hundreds of University of Arkansas students …

Effects Of Cottonseed Meal Containing Gossypol On Testis Physiology In Boars, Kristin Ryan

Animal Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

Feral hogs are an invasive species found in 35 U.S. states without an effective control method to limit their population growth. According to a 2019 survey of 467 landowners in Arkansas, feral hogs caused an estimated $12 million in damages (Cook, 2019). While there are current control methods such as hunting and trapping, 65% of the feral hog population must be eliminated in a specific area to prohibit population growth (Cook, 2019). It is theorized that gossypol, a phenolic compound known to negatively impact reproductive function in other species, could cause sterility in boars. In this preliminary research study, 21 …

An Outline To A Manual On Managing And Administering Alaska Municipal Public Works And State Of Alaska Dot&Pf Highway Projects, Forrester Cook

Student Projects for Graduate Degrees

The design phase and construction phase for public works and civil transportation projects over the last century have become extensively specialized. Consequently, design guides and construction manual literature accessible to project managers, design engineers, and construction engineers has become more comprehensive and increasingly detailed, and additional specialized skill sets are now required to manage and administer heavy civil projects. Gaps exist in the available civil engineering literature and no guide or manual that follows the overall life of a public works or civil transportation project through the complete project lifecycle has been developed by an independent author, a local municipal …

A Study Of Training Programs For Older Dogs, Joseph P. Fisher

Student Projects for Graduate Degrees

The importance of a good training program for dogs especially older dogs is that the program consists of both verbal and physical communication with the dog. With many older dogs being deaf or hard of hearing physical communication must be done. Also, dogs communicate through both body signals and movements as well as verbal. Incorporating hand signals with the verbal commands are essential to a good training program for older dogs. This will help the dog and the trainer to communicate with accuracy and precision. The use of the distinct aspects and methodologies of project management enabled this project to …

Prevention Of Erosion In Hooper Bay, Alaska, Ethan E. Hunsinger

Student Projects for Graduate Degrees

Many rural communities in Alaska are at risk of losing infrastructure to erosion. One of these communities is Hooper Bay, on the west coast of Alaska. According to predictions generated by the Alaska Department of Natural Resources, several hundred feet of airport runway and road will be exposed to erosion between the years of 2015 and 2075. While the runway’s current erosion mitigation measures are effective, overtopping and the depositing of debris remain an issue. There are currently community measures underway to elevate the endangered section of road, and there are plans to implement more rigorous protect in place measures …

Ramming Capitalism: Protest And Dissent At The University Of Rhode Island, 1961-72, Kevin Hart

Senior Honors Projects

The University of Rhode Island, like many other universities, is a fertile ground for the reproduction of human capital. It houses strong engineering, computer science, and pharmaceutical programs, all highly profitable fields. Though protest and resistance are not the norms on the URI campus today, this was not always the case. Wherever capital is reproduced, so is class struggle.

The 1960s saw a new wave of dissent and protest spread throughout the globe. One of the largest movements during this period was the student movement. University students became the vanguard of a “new left.” One that dissented from the old …

What Socioeconomic Factors Influence Breastfeeding Rates?, Keely Ford

Senior Honors Projects

The American Academy of Pediatricians recommends exclusively breastfeeding for six months due to breast milk's nutritional value and protection against various long term and short-term illnesses. Children who are exclusively breastfed for six months have reduced rates of asthma, obesity, type 1 diabetes, severe lower respiratory disease, acute otitis media, sudden infant death syndrome, gastrointestinal infections, and necrotizing enterocolitis in premature infants. The CDC’s most recent national immunizations study, observing infants born in 2018, discovered that only 56.7% of infants were being breastfed at six months and not exclusively. And only 25.8% of infants born in 2018 were breastfed exclusively …

The Invisible Injury, Makenzie Mcdonald

Senior Honors Projects

Concussions are one of the most common injuries seen in sports, and often occur during other activities, such as automobile accidents or falls. Yet unlike most other injuries they are invisible to the naked eye. Bumping your head into something normally does not cause any outwardly physical damage, and even if a scrape or bruise does form it is still impossible to tell if there is a traumatic brain injury underneath. However, concussions are a serious and dangerous injury that if left untreated could ultimately be fatal. Someone suffering from a concussion often suffers in silence and what can feel …

Means Of Menstruation, Hannah Eddleston

Senior Honors Projects

No abstract provided.

Describing The Effect Of Thin Layer Sediment Placement On Coastal Microbial Communities Using Foraminifera Diversity, Elizabeth B. Billings

Senior Honors Projects

Salt marshes are rich ecosystems that play an important role in aquatic food systems and prevent erosion while also providing essential habitats for wildlife. Climate change has resulted in rising sea levels and erosion of these coastal wetlands. Thin Layer Sediment Placement (TLP) is a restoration effort being implemented to mitigate the effects of climate change on coastal ecosystems. The TLP process raises elevation of the marsh and provides substrates for vegetative growth by spraying dredged sediment over existing marsh. The impacts of TLP on microbial populations is not widely understood, therefore metrics are required to study the effects of …

Understanding The Public Perception Of Available Scientific Resources In Coastal Southern Maine, James Gallagher

Senior Honors Projects

I have focused my education as an undergrad towards the effective communication of scientific fact to non-scientific groups. This area of study has recently been dubbed Science Communication and it encompasses the effective articulation, communication, and education of scientific topics to people who haven’t dedicated their lives to scientific study. A major component of effective Scientific Communication is understanding your audience and what kind of communication strategies are best for a chosen demographic.

I grew up in Ocean Park Maine, a small town on the coast of Southern Maine which drove my interest in Marine Science. With my experience in …

What China’S Infrastructure Development Abroad Reveals About Its International Goals, Gillian Hodge

Senior Honors Projects

China’s Belt and Road Initiative has resulted in a variety of investment and infrastructure projects around the world, especially in developing countries. This initiative is unique in its implementation strategy, particularly the hands-on approach China takes to each infrastructure development project. Projects are financed by Chinese national banks and built by Chinese corporations utilizing majority-Chinese labor. These projects are seen by many countries as mutually beneficial; China is able to provide gainful employment and business to its national corporations in exchange for lucrative infrastructure for the host countries in the form of advanced roads, rails, ports, etc. Other countries, especially …

Integration Of Medicinal Fungi Into The Heber W. Youngken Jr. Medicinal Garden, Anthony Makashov

Senior Honors Projects

The Heber W. Youngken Jr. Medicinal Garden is a one-of-a-kind resource that houses close to 300 medicinal plants and is filled to the brim with educational opportunities. For the College of Pharmacy, this garden has been the centerpiece of many classes taught here at the University of Rhode Island and has roots as a physical teaching space. While the garden contains a plethora of plant species, medicinal fungi have yet to have been included in the garden, despite their relevance as both sources of pharmaceutical drug discovery and as natural products with inherent physiological benefits themselves. The purpose of my …

Stigma Surrounding The Use Of Food Insecurity Programs Among College Students, Brianna Kelly

Senior Honors Projects

While addressing food insecurity in college students, a multifactorial approach is crucial in understanding the prevalence of food insecurity and barriers that can further hinder a student from becoming food secure, such as stigma. In the United States, 38.3 million Americans are food insecure (Food Security in the US, 2020). Approximately 40% of college students across the nation reported past-month insecurity in a 2019 study (Frank et al., 2021). A qualitative study among students at the University of North Texas found that due to stigma, many students struggling with food insecurity often did not use federal services or turn to …

How Covid-19 Will Change The Future Of Film And Television In The United States, Isabel Cappo

Senior Honors Projects

March 2020 marked a turning point in U.S. culture as Covid-19 swept across the globe. As of today, the pandemic has taken over six million lives worldwide. Along with the large death toll, Covid has changed so much about the way we interact with others, the way we conduct business and the way we talk about our health. It has even begun to change the film and television we consume and how we consume it. So, what is the future of U.S. film and television in a post Covid-19 society? To answer this question, we can look towards another tragic …

The Importance Of Parent-Teacher Communication And Collaboration And How To Enhance Them For Various Types Of Families, Madeleine O'Neil

Senior Honors Projects

An educator is defined as someone who provides instruction to others. What this definition does not include is how the role of a teacher or educator goes far beyond merely providing instructions and teaching others. In order to be effective, teachers must learn how to adequately communicate and collaborate with their students, other education professionals, and families. Especially in the education field, teachers must learn how to communicate and collaborate with each student’s family to help create positive, productive, and beneficial professional relationships.

Communication should be ongoing and should be carried out in a manner that works for both the …

Combating Recidivism, Shaylin Daley

Senior Honors Projects

SHAYLIN DALEY (Psychology) Combating Recidivism Sponsor: Lisa Holley (Political Science) Many people believe that criminals cannot be helped. It is evident that at least some of society shuns people who break laws and have negative views about the amount of money spent on detaining inmates. Thousands of individuals are released from United States prisons a day. Many of these individuals have no plan in place for their return home and are sent into the streets with nothing except for a jail ID. Most of these people will end up returning to prison. A good sum of these people face problems …

Arguments In Opposition Of The Chinese Exclusion Act, Kaylee Goyette

Senior Honors Projects

No abstract provided.

Finance And Accounting Dual-Degree Proposal, Meghan Finley

Senior Honors Projects

No abstract provided.

Make Time For Movement: 5-Minute Exercise Breaks In The Classroom, Catherine O'Donnell

Senior Honors Projects

Picture yourself back in elementary school. Have you ever struggled to finish an assignment no matter how hard you tried? You may have felt antsy, unfocused, or completely exhausted from the constant thinking and brain power it takes to complete a full six hour school day. What could you have done to regain focus and energy to continue learning? An exercise break! As an Elementary Education major and certified Group Exercise fitness instructor, I aspire to combine my passion for teaching and fitness by bringing exercise into the classroom. For my project, I have designed 5-minute movement breaks that follow …

Sex, Suffrage, And Scandalous Ladies Podcast, Emma Hayes

Senior Honors Projects

The podcast, “Sex, Suffrage, and Scandalous Women,” tells stories of activists about whom the average listener may not be familiar. General audiences may not know the women’s impact beyond a basic level. Mainstream history lessons often gloss over the complex and nuanced aspects of feminist movement accomplishments and only trace activism in broad strokes. By disseminating this research in a podcast form I can highlight understudied aspects of women’s history in a way that is digestible and easy to understand. The podcast aims to answer questions about the motives of each movement and theme of activism, as well as the …

Performing From Under Penal Gaze: Examining What Incarcerated People Post To Tiktok, Lily B. Truppi

Senior Honors Projects

The prison walls previously keeping the lives of inmates private from the general population had been largely successful. In recent years, the creation of the internet and the accessibility of social media has transformed the way we can view and interact with the incarcerated population. Since the introduction of the social media app known as TikTok, the experience and lives of inmates have been posted and consumed by a larger portion of the population outside of academia. Within these videos inmates can express themselves through performance of culturally popular trends, their lives within prison, and establish identity in a place …

Sino-Us Trade War, Erin Torgersen

Senior Honors Projects

China and the United States are unquestionably the two wealthiest economies in the world. These two countries alone account for almost half of the world’s wealth. As these nations battle to become the world's most powerful economy, it is no surprise high tensions have developed to complicate their relationship. China’s economy has been rapidly growing, especially in the last two decades as China is making its way towards the top of the list of strongest economies through its abundance of exports and manufacturing. Alternatively, as the U.S.’s economy has slowly decreased in the last few years, the gap between the …

The Met Costume Institute: Evolution, Metamorphosis, And Cultural Phenomenon, Shelby Kanski

Senior Honors Projects

No abstract provided.

Banana: A Scholarly And Narrative Recollection Of My Experiences As A Korean American Adoptee, Diana Cajolet

Senior Honors Projects

No abstract provided.

Promoting The Healthy Development Of All Adolescents Through An Equity Lens: Continuing Education For Secondary-Level Educators, Isabella Simone

Senior Honors Projects

American schools, as an institution, have a mission to educate society’s youth in a way that is characterized by, and promotes, equity regarding educational access, opportunities, and outcomes. Doing so promises to support the individual growth and development of all students. Unfortunately, high school students face challenges regarding healthy development — academic, social, and identity-based — during the transition from childhood to adulthood. These challenges include navigating their identity development, achieving academic success, managing school and family demands, and planning for their futures. Barriers to the successful achievement of these challenges include risk factors associated with family relationships, financial standing, …

Big Business, Small Plastic, Hannah Johnson

Senior Honors Projects

No abstract provided.