Ancient, Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque Art and Architecture Commons^™

The Everyday Monument: Architectural And Spatial Transformations Of Rome's Nasoni, 1874–Present, Sandra L. Santos

McNair Summer Research Program

Rome's nasoni are small public drinking fountains that have provided free water throughout the city since 1874. There are approximately 2,500–2,800 nasoni in Rome, actively supplying people with free drinking water. Although they are usually understood as ordinary and mundane hydraulic infrastructure, their persistence across different political periods makes them useful objects for examining the relationship between architecture, public service, and political meaning. This research asks how the forms, materials, and spatial contexts of late-nineteenth-century nasoni differed from fountains constructed or modified during the Fascist era.

Over my three weeks of fieldwork in Rome, I documented seventy-five public drinking fountains …

Architecture As Political Symbolism: Power, Authority, & The Built Form, Naomi Minwalla

Senior Honors Projects, 2020-current

This study examines how architecture functions as a medium of political symbolism, exploring the ways in which built environments communicate authority, ideology, and collective identity. Drawing on theoretical perspectives from Émile Durkheim, Max Weber, and Murray Edelman, the research first establishes how political symbols shape social cohesion, legitimize authority, and construct political meaning. The study then applies architectural interpretation frameworks developed by Martin Warnke, Erwin Panofsky, and Alois Riegl to analyze how symbolic meaning is embedded within architectural form, spatial organization, and ornamentation.

Using a qualitative comparative case study design, the research analyzes two major religious structures: the Seville Cathedral …

Catacombs In Context: Exploring Roman Architectural Influence In The Catacombs Of Rabat, Malta, Emily S.R Hodson

Classical Mediterranean and Middle East Honors Projects

Previously, scholarship on the Mediterranean catacombs has focused on isolated sites or on the religious significance and iconography of regional groups. By contextualizing the archaeological data through comparison and recentering the discussion on architecture, this research offers a contextualized, non-apologetic picture of ancient Mediterranean catacombs. This architectural comparison between the Roman catacombs and those of St. Paul and Abbatija Tad-Dejr in Malta reveals both significant architectural change and the persistence of archaic features, suggesting a high degree of cultural continuity under Roman provincial governance on Malta (218 BCE - c. 5th - 6th centuries CE). This, paired with the emergence …

From The Pit, Joshua C. Goering

School of Art, Art History, and Design: Theses and Student Creative Work

Clay retains histories; the memory of each action it experiences is depicted on its surface and in its form.  I am a potter focused on making objects that capture these moments. Pinching, scraping, trimming, throwing, and carving expose tooth and excavate form, revealing the qualities of the material and showing the marks of handwork. As a potter, I am interested in participating in a history of vessel making and understanding making through an interpretation of the historic object. The work acts as an archive, accumulating information about process, materials, and a greater context of elder objects. Integrating these vocabularies creates …

Infinite Line, Infinite Knowledge: The 'Spera' And Organized Chaos In Lambert's Encyclopedia, The 'Liber Floridus', Ava Romano

Theses and Dissertations

The Liber Floridus is a medieval encyclopedia renowned for its program of circular diagrams, or sperae. Inside this manuscript of 190 chapters, these diagrams frame and embody written knowledge, revealing a connection between encyclopedism and life in the Benedictine monastery by creating a coherent visual organization of chapters.

The Arch And The Looking Glass: Umbli Cu Cioara Vopsitǎ, Ana Popescu

Masters Theses

The Arch and The Looking Glass: Umbli Cu Cioara Vopsită (You Are Walking Around with a Painted Crow)

A thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Fine Arts in Ceramics in the Department of Ceramics of the Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, Rhode Island.

By Ana Popescu, 2025

Approved by Master’s Examination Committee:

Lesley Baker, Shoji Satake (Chair), Heather Bhandari, Tucker Houlihan

Date: May 17th, 2025

Location: Rhode Island School of Design, Providence, Rhode Island

To be opened for self-reflection in 10 years, on May 17th, 2035:

I’ve been mulling over how to make …

The Principles Of Islamic Moral Philosophy And The Possibility Of Re-Conceptualizing Classical Islamic Aesthetics Of Architecture, Muhammad Feteha

Theses and Dissertations

This study is primarily concerned with the intersection of the moral and aesthetic theories of Abū Ḥāmid al-Ghazālī (d. 1111). Al-Ghazālī’s theory of aesthetics has been the subject of thorough scholarly investigations and diverse interpretations in the field of Islamic art history since the 1940s. This thesis critiques the premises upon which the use of al-Ghazālī’s writings in studies of Islamic art and architecture were built. It suggests that they lead to what could be described as “the contradiction of unethical beauty.” To overcome this contradiction, it offers a comprehensive interpretation of al-Ghazālī’s aesthetics through analyzing the concept ḥusn in …

Ultrabaroque Grandeur: Examining The Churrigueresque In Spanish Architecture From The Seventeenth And Eighteenth Centuries, Sarah Staeben

Capstone Showcase

Following the Protestant Reformation, Spain was in a unique position compared to the rest of Europe. The importance of Catholicism was intrinsic to Spanish society by this point, as it was under King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, aptly dubbed the Catholic Monarchs, that the Christians reconquered the Iberian peninsula in 1492, after an eight century rule by Arab-Muslims. In the centuries that followed, Spanish architecture reached new levels of grandeur in the wake of reformed Catholic doctrine. Following the motto “docere, delectare, movere”(to teach, to delight, to move), architects were urged to convey the Church’s power and garner new supporters. …

A Home For Literature, Elizabeth Kapsch

SPARK Symposium Presentations

1813 was a big year for Chatsworth, although no one living there knew it. In theory, it was a year like any other. William George Spencer Cavendish, the 6th Duke of Devonshire, had inherited the estate from his father two years prior, and just a year ago had made an impressive purchase of the entirety of the Bishop of Ely’s library–his book-adoring mother, of course, would be proud. William had no marital prospects, nor would he ever. In thirteen years, he would begin work with famous architect Joseph Paxton. Unbeknownst to twenty-three-year-old William, this partnership would result in some of …

Developing Resilience In The School Setting: A Response To Trauma, Michelle Nutter

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Lasting effects of childhood trauma manifest themselves in a variety of problem behaviors witnessed in classrooms across the nation. School staff would benefit from background knowledge to understand students who have experienced trauma and interventions to respond appropriately and positively to behaviors. As a school leader, the purpose of this cross-case qualitative design was twofold. First, I hoped to understand the perceptions of school staff members regarding trauma-informed interventions in elementary public schools. Second, this study explored the infrastructure of select schools that enable principals and staff members to view its students through a trauma lens. Literature on successful interventions …

Self-Authorship And Professional Identity Formation In Professional-Level Athletic Training Students, Matthew Rivera

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The development of a professional identity is a crucial component of health professions’ education programs and aids in interprofessional collaboration, communication, efficiency, and patient outcomes. Yet, limited research on the development of the individual as a component of professional identity development exists. The use of curricular strategies rooted in the self-authorship theory can close this gap in the development of a professional identity. Self-authorship is a developmental continuum whereby individuals move from following external formulas to building an internal foundation where they make meaning and integrate beliefs into how they think and act. This study aimed to investigate the self-authorship …

Networking For Mid-Level Administrators In Higher Education: Increase Job Performance And Reduce Burnout, Laura Glasbrenner

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Mid-level administrators occupy a complex position within higher education institutions, a role defined by “middleness” (Gleeson & Shain, 1999, p. 488), which characterizes their place in institutional hierarchies between superiors and subordinates. Mid-level administrators often feel isolated since they cannot be seen as having close personal relationships with those above or below them in the rankings. Consequently, mid-level administrators are subject to burnout, a psychological condition resulting from isolation compounded by working long hours reconciling the competing and conflicting needs of supervisors and subordinates, which leaves them emotionally exhausted, physically depleted, and feeling like they have reached a professional dead-end. …

Evaluating The Influence Of Some Factors On Capability Maturity Model Integration For Development (Cmmi-Dev) Maturity Level, Sakawa Ogega

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Capability Maturity Model Integration for Development (CMMI-DEV) is a collection of characteristics of effective processes that guide improving an organization's operations and ability to manage software projects' development. The CMMI-DEV maturity levels range from 1 to 5 for the staged model; however, there are no certifications for maturity level 1. Organizations appraised may seek higher CMMI-DEV maturity levels. Most clients will seek to do business with organizations with at least CMMI Maturity Level 3 certification. This research aimed to find if software development methodology (SDM), CMMI training, and other process improvement (OPI) standards affect CMMI maturity level rating. The dependent …

State Charter School Law Scores As A Predictor Of Illegal Activity Within The Chartering Sector, David Stashevsky

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

State charter school policy is influenced through a collaboration between advocacy groups and state legislators. Charter school advocacy groups have an inherent bias toward deregulation and autonomy. Two advocacy groups, the Center for Education Reform (CER) and the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools (NAPCS), each conduct annual analyses on state charter school laws using their own model charter law as the comparator. Each group has developed a rubric of indicators with sub-scores which combine to form an overall state score. Higher scores indicate a closer adherence to the advocacy group’s model charter law. The charter school sector in the …

In-Person And Remote Employees And Information Security Policy Compliance, Joyce Mui

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Many workers have changed their working status from in-person to remote, in the past several years, with a large increase in the number of employees working remotely during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. In parallel, the increasing costs of data breaches and number of security incidents continue to be a concern to organizations seeking to protect their organization, systems, and data. This study’s research questions were formed using a theoretical framework of the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) to discover influences on employee behavior and the Social Bonds Theory (SBT) to address strength of relationships and impact to compliance. This …

Adolescent Well-Being And Exclusionary Discipline: A Resiliency Model, Rachel Ballard

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Adolescents, especially those with a mental illness, often behave in ways judged to be impulsive, overly emotional, and irresponsible (Gogtay et al., 2004; Lawrence et al., 2015; Tamnes et al., 2010). Many teen behaviors which concern adults can be related to underdeveloped skills or competencies, rate of brain development, or expressions of mental disorders (Casey et al., 2011; Serbin et al., 2011; Spear, 2000). Behaviors commonly associated with adolescence, such as impulsivity, risk-taking, and efforts to fit in with peers, are often seen as a serious threat to school harmony, learning, and student safety, necessitating a disciplinary response from school …

The Hidden Quality Cost Resulting From Food And Drug Administration Inspection Failures In Mid To Large Companies, Jonathan Walston

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

An approach to identify and validate hidden quality costs associated with regulatory non-compliance from inspections by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not been previously researched. This dissertation presents a robust quantitative methodology to analyze the daily cumulative abnormal returns (CAR) on populations of publicly traded mid-to-large cap companies around FDA inspection events having negative outcomes. Three hypotheses have been tested focusing only on inspection events from companies falling under the biologics product type category. Hypothesis 1 states that there is no statistically significant correlation between the sum of CAR around inspection windows for such companies when a negative …

Us Manufacturing Readiness Assesment For Industry 4.0, Yogesh Bhutani

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Industry 4.0 is the next frontier in manufacturing evolution. Industry 4.0 is the term coined by the German government based on the research work of Henning Kaegermann. Multiple studies have been published worldwide, showing the slow or no adoption of Industry 4.0 technologies. Factors such as high costs, unproven technologies, integration, and others impacting the adoption are areas of concern. Readiness is an important factor that impacts adoption. Understanding the current readiness for Industry 4.0 to predict future adoption levels is important. It is vital to understand the readiness of manufacturing companies to adopt Industry 4.0 technologies, as this is …

A Holistic Approach To Creating Cultures Of Quality Excellence Within Higher Education Institutions In North Carolina, Natalie Aman

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This paper first seeks to identify cultural factors of faculty, staff, and students within Higher Education Intuitions (HEI) and then understand how those factors affect the individual as well as the overall larger population of all studied groups to create cultures of quality excellence. Secondary data collected from government databases was used for the research. The independent variables included cultural factors for each stakeholder and the dependent variables included satisfaction levels of each stakeholder. Faculty and staff independent cultural variables included Performance Management, Supervisor/Department Chair Effectiveness, Communication & Collaboration, Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging, and Mission and Pride. The dependent variable …

Adopting Open-Source Methodology For Improving Business Processes And Public Trust, Lawrence Bosek

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Technology and the Internet have given rise to the availability of information at our fingertips. While the public, particularly consumers, are more commonly described as being the leading users and beneficiaries of electronic information services, businesses and governments are also players in the same information technology resource arena. Technology is also being integrated more in our everyday lives. Important information can now be easily stored on Internet websites for the public, businesses, and other governmental offices to search and peruse when needed. The Internet has also allowed for electronic devices to connect and communicate with each other in ways that …

The Relationship Between Principal Perceptions On Leadership And Inclusive Education With Growth Model Outcomes For Students With Disabilities, Jason Bletzinger

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Now more than ever, school principals play a critical role in effective implementation of inclusive education programs in their schools, as inclusive practices are becoming tightly embedded in a school’s culture (Sailor, 2016; Shogren et al., 2015). The success of inclusive education programs has been primarily supported by school principals’ positive attitudes toward inclusion (Romanuck Murphy, 2018; Urton et al., 2014). With increasing pressure to provide legally compliant and quality inclusive special education services in schools, it has become more critical than ever that school principals not only recognize the roles and responsibilities they play in leading inclusive education programs …

Of Word And Stone: The History Of Medieval Spain Through The Lens Of Architecture And Language, Samantha Hernandez

Architecture Undergraduate Honors Theses

Medieval Spain is a unique summation of religious and cultural communities. Through the built forms of Al-Andalus, there is unique preservation of societal imprints that parallel the formation of the Castilian language. These two mediums—architecture and language—are a telling of the culture and history of the region. By first observing the historical formation of Spanish, and in turn the various communities which inhabited the Iberian Peninsula, one may find many correlations with architecture created at the same time. After understanding the historical making of the Spanish language, it is important to analyze the language itself and how it differs from …

Procedural City Generation With Combined Architectures For Real-Time Visualization, Griffin Poyck

All Theses

The work and research of this paper sought to build upon traditional city generation and simulation in creating a tool that both realistically simulates cities and their prominent features and also creates aesthetic and artistically rich cities using assets that combine several contemporary or near contemporary architectural styles. The major city features simulated are the surrounding terrain, road networks, individual buildings, and building placement. The tools used to both create and integrate these features were created in Houdini with Unreal Engine 5 as the intended final destination. This research was influenced by the city, town, and road networking of Ghost …

Ritual, Spectacle, And Theatre In Late Medieval Seville (Chapter 1), Christopher B. Swift

Publications and Research

From the fall of Islamic Išbīliya in 1248 to the conquest of the New World, Seville was a nexus of economic and religious power where interconfessional living among Christians, Jews, and Muslims was negotiated on public stages. From out of seemingly irreconcilable ideologies of faith, hybrid performance culture emerged in spectacles of miraculous transformation, disciplinary processionals, and representations of religious identity. Ritual, Spectacle, and Theatre in Late Medieval Seville reinvigorates the study of medieval Iberian theater by revealing the ways in which public expressions of devotion, penance, and power fostered cultural reciprocity, rehearsed religious difference, and ultimately helped establish Seville …

Propagation Vs Intrusion: Islamic Influences In Medieval Georgia, Jake Hubbert

Studia Antiqua

No abstract provided.

Leveraging Data Analytics To Study The Impacts Of State Budget Cuts On Public Higher Education Institutions In The United States, Praveen Kumar Guraja

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Public higher education in the United States (US) is funded through two primary forms: one is through state higher education appropriation funds, and the other is student financial aid that is directly given to students. Increasing postsecondary full-time equivalent (FTE) enrollment and graduation rate are becoming a crucial economic priority in the US. However, only a limited study is available about whether state investment in higher education and increasing tuition charges can impact FTE student enrollment (FTEE) and graduation rate (GR) at 4-year public universities in the US. A systematic literature review was conducted for the present research to comprehend …

Narrative Inquiry Of Opt Workers In Manufacturing Engineering Fields, Marietta Joleen Watson

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Optional Practical Training (OPT) is a highly valued and highly underutilized program designed to offer international students an opportunity to work in the U.S. and train in their field of study. This qualitative study collected and analyzed the narratives of three alumni of a Midwest university who completed OPT in the manufacturing engineering field. Four themes were identified in the narratives. These themes were inextricable to the premise that OPT is a deeply appreciated opportunity for F-1 students. The first theme is viewing the OPT experience as a system which includes the university, USCIS, and the employer and moreover a …

Anthropomorphism In Architecture: An Investigation Into Anthropomorphism Through Ancient Greco-Roman Religious Structures, Emily Wilcox

Architecture Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper will outline and detail an investigation into religious Greco-Roman structures of antiquity through the lens of anthropomorphism. Through defining anthropomorphism, three lenses of thought have presented themselves as means of inquiry: metaphor, scale and proportion, and ergonomics. Previous research into these structures and cultures has shown that there was indeed consideration for the human body in designing in construction; this project hopes to solidify these claims and present new supporting information regarding specific relationships to the body using anthropomorphism. Many contemporary buildings approach the relationship to the human body as a mask or an afterthought, disregarding what reflecting …

An Analysis Of Charging Practices And Their Impact On Battery Degradation In North American Electric Vehicles Built Between 2010-2020, Douglas William Edward Ferrier

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Electric vehicles (EVs) are emerging as a component of the global solution to combat climate change. However, in North America, particularly in the United States and Canada, the transition away from internal combustion engines (ICE) has been slow. North America faces unique challenges due to its geographical size and population in comparison to other continents. The good news is that EV adoption is increasing within North America. Along with increased EV adoption, governments and public companies are constructing charging infrastructure to support increased consumer EV purchases. Despite increased adoption, many future and current owners throughout North American society have concerns …

Preoperative Predictors For 30-Day Postoperative Emergency Department Visit After A Bariatric Surgery, Pawan Bhandari

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

One of US hospitals' widely used critical performance or quality outcome measures is the 30-day emergency department (ED) visit after a surgical procedure. Such ED visits add millions of dollars each year as a cost burden to US healthcare. This study aimed to identify key predictors known before the patient's surgery, contributing to undesirable ED visits within 30 days of a bariatric surgical procedure. The study was conducted in three phases. The first phase of the study engaged a panel of experts to narrow down important preoperative factors for patients undergoing bariatric surgery in the form of a Delphi study. …