Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

There Must Be Something In The Water: Understanding Pfas Contamination Of Groundwater As A National Security Issue, Kylie N. Ford

Student Theses 2015-Present

This report addresses the widespread pollution of domestic groundwater resources with Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) caused by firefighting activities performed at military installations across the United States. Two former military bases in Southeastern Pennsylvania are used as a single case study: the Naval Air Development Center (NADC) in Warminster and the Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base (NASJRB) in Horsham. Chapter 1 gives a history of domestic military bases from the perspective of the infrastructure buildup and downsizing that occurred over the 20th Century, along with the environmental degradation revealed during brownfield redevelopment. The chapter then gives specifics about …

Early Child Development Amid The Pandemic, Zain Saeed Siddiqui

MSJ Capstone Projects

I would like to bring to notice the importance of early child development because the early years are crucial for the development especially the skills that are going to help children succeed in life. Basically, I would like to focus on the natural development of the human being from birth to maturity, enabling children to become the transforming elements of society, leading to a harmonious and peaceful world.

Emotional well-being and social competence provide a strong foundation for emerging cognitive abilities, and together they are the bricks and mortar that comprise the foundation of human development.

Generally, development happens in …

Genomic Contributors To Individual Differences In Reward-Related Neural Activity, Lindsay Jane Michalski

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Aberrant reward-related behavior, including impulsive and risk-taking behaviors, is a common feature of externalizing psychopathology (e.g., attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, antisocial personality disorder, and substance-use disorders). Through imaging studies, these behaviors have been linked to dysregulated reactivity within a diffuse reward-related corticostriatal neural network, including the striatum, frontal regions (namely orbital, ventromedial, and dorsolateral cortices), the insula, and the hippocampus. Because variability in risk-taking behavior and related psychopathology is moderately-to-largely heritable (i.e., with estimates ranging from 40 – 80%), a genetically-informed approach is well-positioned to provide valuable insight into the etiology of reward-related neural and behavioral phenotypes that characterize externalizing …

Structural And Tissue-Level Adaptations Of Lumbar Intervertebral Discs In Humans With Inducible Low Back Pain Symptoms, Christian Isaiah Weber

McKelvey School of Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Low back pain (LBP) is a devastating musculoskeletal ailment that impacts majority of the global population. Up to 95% of cases are considered nonspecific where the origin is unclear. Although there is a diagnosis with these cases, there lacks specificity that would help individuals with treatment and pain management. Imaging techniques such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are primarily utilized in the diagnosis of LBP as it illuminates internal structures of the spine. One important structure clearly identified with MRI is the intervertebral disc (IVD) that is susceptible to injury and disease. Further, diagnostic imaging is performed lying down where …

Discovering Motor Phenotypes In Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Cross-Syndrome Approach, Daniel Edwin Lidstone

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder with a behavioral phenotype characterized by persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction accompanied by restricted, repetitive patterns of behaviors, interests, or activities. Currently in the US, approximately 2.5% of children have a diagnosis of ASD. The etiology of ASD is complex, however the disorder does have a strong genetic basis. Specific genetic mutations can lead to neuroanatomical and neurophysiological changes during development resulting in a behavioral phenotype that falls along the ASD spectrum and may result in a diagnosis of ASD. The severity of ASD-specific behaviors falls on a continuum …

Feeding The Future Meat Doesn’T Come Cheap, Lukas C. Southard

Capstones

Cultured – or as it is referred to by companies innovating the technology clean – meat is expected to be the next innovation to change the way the world gets its animal protein. Meat from animal cells grown in a lab seems like science fiction but it is around the corner from hitting your supermarket shelves. The technology has been developed but how these companies intend on scaling up their production to meet retail demands remains a mystery. So far companies have relied on seed and early stage investment from venture capital companies and private sources to fund research. Predictions …

Examining The Relationship Of Exercise And Sleep In Students Across Multiple Academic Disciplines, Taylor Zewe

Honors Projects

Students in college learn the importance of balancing their academic studies with their sleep and exercise habits. The amount of sleep and exercise a student recieves has been examined in previous research studies. In these studies it was found that exercise had a postive affect on the amount of sleep received. However, there is little research on the affect academic discipline has on sleep habits and/or exercise habits of students in college. The purpose of this study is to examine the sleep and exercise habits among students in multiple academic majors at Bowling Green State University.

Undergraduates And Stress, Mahra Crone

Honors Projects

America is facing a serious mental health crisis, which may be an effect of increased chronic stress. Students, in particular, are vulnerable to this hazard as most face a moderate to extreme amount of stress. The programs which colleges and universities have put into place are outdated. Ineffective treatment of mental health crises leads to disastrous consequences. The present study analyzed the effects of major and grade level on stress level and sources of stress for undergraduate universities at both a large, public university and a small, private college. The author found that a student’s grade level and choice of …

Biological And Psychological Implications Of Mindfulness Meditation For College Students, Kelsey Madison Dietrich

Honors Projects

The purpose of this capstone project was threefold: investigate the psychological implications of mindfulness meditation for college students enrolled in a semester-long course introducing these practices, investigate the biological implications of mindfulness meditation for these students, and create the Peer Education “Mindfulness” presentation for the Wellness Connection to introduce mindfulness meditation methods to a greater quantity of college students. The following paper describes the two components of this capstone project that examine the implications of mindfulness meditation opportunities available for college students specifically at Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio.

Fish Passage And Hydropower: Investigating Resource Agency Decision-Making During The Ferc Hydropower Relicensing Process, Sarah Vogel

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Hydropower dams represent a significant challenge for the successful migration of sea-run fish, many species of which are in decline. Most hydropower dams in the United States are regulated by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), an independent federal agency responsible for granting 30 to 50-year licenses to projects for their continued operation. Licenses typically include conditions for the conservation of sea-run fish such as fish passage construction, operational changes, monitoring of effectiveness, and other mitigative conditions. While FERC remains the primary authority in licensing, the current regulatory framework stipulates input from other federal and state resource and regulatory agencies, …

Trematodes And Neorickettsia: Diversity Of Digeneans And Their Bacterial Endosymbionts (Neorickettsia) In Mollusk First Intermediate Hosts From Eastern Mongolia, Morgan Gallahue

Honors College Theses

This study focused on the survey of 34 freshwater snail samples collected from NE Mongolia for larval flatworm parasites in the class Trematoda. 32 of the snail samples were infected, and the parasites were identified based on morphology and DNA sequences. Nine of the identified parasite samples were screened for the presence of bacterial endosymbionts in the genus Neorickettsia in the family Anaplasmataceae. All of the samples screened for Neorickettsia were negative for the bacterium. Species of Neorickettsia are known to cause several diseases such as Sennetsu Fever (in humans) and Potomac Horse Fever. There have been relatively few reliable …

Narratives Of Canadian Identity At The Ultimate Fighting Championship, Jared V. Walters

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The purpose of this dissertation was to examine the use of representations and symbols of Canadian identity within the event coverage produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship Corporation, in the context of its two key events, Ultimate Fighting Championship, and Fight Night, produced in Canada. To establish the historical context in which the sport developed in Canada, a narrative historiography of the political and legal struggles that led to the legalization and increasing popularity of Mixed Martial Arts, and the UFCC’s version of the sport, in particular. This first major part of the dissertation is contained in Study 1. The …

Heirloom And Hybrid Corn In The American Corn Belt: An Ethnography Of Seed Saving Practices, Rachelle Halaska

Theses and Dissertations

This ethnographic study examines the practices and context of contemporary heirloom corn seed saving practices and projects in the American Corn Belt. It examines heirloom corn conservation and hand pollination practices at Seed Savers Exchange in Decorah, Iowa in 2015. From there the study extends to interviews with heirloom farmers, breeders and gardeners in Wisconsin and Illinois. The findings indicate that the lines between the mainstream and the margins of corn production are highly blurred, and that there is a considerable amount of cross-pollination of ideas and practices between alternative corn farming and dominant industrial hybrid production in the American …

Establishing An Ideal Inclusion Rate Of Fermented Soybean Meal And Sodium Butyrate On Growth Performance, Complete Blood Cell Count, And Nutrient Utilization In Nursery Pigs, Kristopher A. Bottoms

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

To evaluate increasing levels of sodium butyrate (SB) in nursery diets on growth performance (Experiment 1 & 2), complete blood cell count (Experiment 2), and the optimal level of fermented soybean meal for maximum performance in weanling pigs (Experiment 3), weaned pigs were blocked with initial body weight (BW) and allotted to dietary treatments. Treatments were: 1) Control (C) moderately complex corn-soybean-meal based supplemented with 0.05% benzoic acid (BA), but devoid of SB; C diet supplemented with 0.05%, 0.10%, or 0.15% SB (Experiment 1). Treatments in experiment 2 consisted of 1) a moderately complex corn-soybean-meal based diet devoid of SB …

Effects Of Mercury On The Dopamine Transporter Cell Surface Expression In Pc12 Cells, Christina Hui

Student Theses

Environmental factors, such as heavy metal exposures, have been suggested to have an impact not only on neurodegenerative disease, such as Parkinson’s disease, but also on psychostimulants abuse and their toxicity. In this study, two questions were addressed: 1) effects of mercuric chloride on parkinsonian toxicant 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium (MPP⁺) induced cytotoxicity and 2) effects of mercuric chloride on cell surface dopamine transporter. Pheochromocytorma cells (PC12) were treated with various concentrations of mercuric chloride (0.02~2.0 ppm) for 4 hours with and without 0.1 mM MPP⁺. Significant potentiation of toxicity was observed when there was co-treatment with 0.5 ppm …

Cholesterol: A Possible Mediator Of Apoe Risk For Alzheimer's Disease, Michelle Marie Dunk

Theses and Dissertations

Despite the well-established link between the ε4 allele of the apolipoprotein E (APOE) gene and AD, the underlying mechanisms that mediate the risk of developing AD remain elusive. Literature on the role of APOE in cholesterol metabolism suggests that blood cholesterol may be a key factor in the development of AD pathology. Current study aims to investigate whether total cholesterol differs by APOE status and whether this relationship is predictive of AD diagnosis and its biomarkers. Baseline total cholesterol, APOE status, AD diagnosis, global cognitive function, brain Aβ, plasma Aβ40 and Aβ42, and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) Aβ, tau, and phosphorylated …

Reexamining Object-Based Visual Attention: Understanding The Nature Of Direction-Dependent Attention Shifts, Adam Joseph Barnas

Theses and Dissertations

Attentional selection is a process by which relevant sensory stimuli are afforded enhanced priority for processing over and above irrelevant sensory stimuli. Object-based attention is a form of selection that leads to preferential processing of visual information contained in/on an attended object versus an unattended object. Observers typically exhibit enhanced performance to a target at an invalidly cued same object location compared to a different-object location, which results in a same object advantage as measured by the response time (RT) difference between these two target locations. A growing body of research has shown that object-based effects are small, inconsistent, and …

Sexual Dimorphism And The Shape Of The Proximal Tibia In A Radiographic Sample, Emily Eiseman

Theses and Dissertations

SEXUAL DIMORPHISM AND THE SHAPE OF THE PROXIMAL TIBIA IN A RADIOGRAPHIC SAMPLE

This study investigates the use of radiographs to determine sexual dimorphism in the shape of the tibia. The goal of the research was to identify a small set of markers that would allow researchers to efficiently and accurately determine a person’s sex from a radiograph of the proximal tibia.

The sample consisted of radiographs including 75 females and 46 males ranging in age from 21 to 81. Measurements were taken on 27 points around the area of the knee including the tibia, patella, and femur. The measurements …

The Feedback-Related Negativity Is A Time-Dependent Brain Mechanism That Facilitates Aversive Learning: Implications For The Reinforcement Learning Frn Hypothesis, Eric Rawls

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Organisms encode rewarding and aversive experiences through reinforcement learning, capitalizing on prediction errors (PEs), which adapt action strategies over time. Computational theories are explicit that PE signals should update action weights continuously over the course of a behavioral task, an important time-dependent variation that is eschewed in traditional neuroscience studies that average over large numbers of trials. I examined variation in reaction times and feedback-locked cortical activity over time as a function of PE to critically examine theories indicating that PE signals drive time-dependent learning. We recorded EEG while participants completed a novel reinforcement task that varied prediction error on …

Coccidiosis Vaccination And Nutrient Utilization In Broiler Chickens, Alyson Elaine Gautier

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Four experiments were conducted to evaluate the interrelationships among coccidiosis vaccination and nutrient utilization in floor-reared broiler chickens. Experiment 1 longitudinally compared the effects of coccidiosis vaccination and a chemical coccidiostat on broiler performance, nutrient digestibility, and intestinal morphology. Coccidiosis vaccination had no significant impact on morphology, overall body weight gain and feed intake of vaccinated birds, although vaccination impaired overall FCR. Vaccination elicited a transient reduction in digestibility of energy and nutrients, particularly for lipids, but vaccinated birds were able to recover from these reductions by 20 d. Experiment 2 assessed the impact of vaccination in digestibility of different …

Strategies To Improve Forage Utilization By Sheep Offered Forage Mixtures, Valens Niyigena

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In the first experiment, alfalfa and novel endophyte-infected tall fescue (NE+) forages were harvested after a killing frost, then mixed to formulate 4 different treatments; alfalfa alone, 67% alfalfa +33% fescue, 33% alfalfa + 67% fescue, or 100% fescue. After 3 months of storage as silage, Dorper ewe lambs (n = 20; mean BW = 34.7 ± 6.65 kg) were fed silage for ad libitum consumption, using 5 animals per treatment. Increasing the proportion of NE+ tall fescue improved (P < 0.05) silage total acids and lactic acid concentrations and decreased silage ammonia concentration. Digestible dry matter and organic matter intake and nitrogen utilization parameters decreased with increasing inclusion of NE+ in diet. In the second experiment, 16 Dorper ewe lambs (41.8 ± 4.61 kg BW) were assigned to 4 different treatments; alfalfa silage alone (0 g/kg; CONT) or alfalfa silage mixed with chopped sericea lespedeza (SL) hay to provide 90 (LOW), 180 (MED), or 270 g/kg SL (HIGH) on a dry matter basis in a randomized complete block design experiment with 2 period to provide 4 observations per treatment for each experimental period. Increasing the proportion of sericea lespedeza in the diet decreased dry matter and organic matter digestibility but did not affect feed intake. Fecal nitrogen (g/kg N intake) increased linearly (P < 0.01) while urinary N (g/ day and g/ kg of N intake) tended to decreased linearly and quadratically (P ≤ 0.1) with increasing the proportion of SL in diet. In the third experiments, 16 gestating Dorper ewe lambs (49.1 ± 4.61 kg BW) were allocated to 4 treatments; alfalfa silage alone (0% g/kg; CONT) or alfalfa silage mixed with lablab purpureus(LP) hay to provide 90 (LOW), 180 (MED), or 270 g/kg LP (HIGH) on a dry matter (DM) basis, in a randomized complete block design experiment with a total 8 replication per treatment. Supplementation of LP in diet increased quadratically (P ≤ 0.04) forage dry matter, organic matter intake, digestible dry matter and digestible organic matter intake (P < 0.05). Nitrogen apparently absorbed and urinary N both decreased linearly (P < 0.01) with adding more LP hay in diet. Harvesting and mixing alfalfa and fescue after a killing frost improved silage fermentation characteristics and supplementation of tannins from SL and polyphenol from LP altered N excretion.

Key words: lablab, sericea lespedeza, alfalfa silage, nitrogen, sheep.

Methods To Evaluate Ruminant Animal Production Responses, Jose Manuel Diaz Gomez

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In experiment 1, 80 steers (197.0 kg initial body weight; BW for fall, 116.9 kg for spring), were stocked at 2.45 and 4.1 calves/ha in fall and spring, respectively in 16 tall fescue pastures [fall ergovaline (EV) = 1,475 ppb and spring EV = 1,173 ppb] under 2 treatments, mineral (MIN) (n = 8) and cumulative management (CM) (n = 8). Forage allowance did not differ (P = 0.76) between CM and MIN during fall but differed during spring (P ≤ 0.05, 2.55 vs. 3.22 kg DM/kg BW, for MIN and CM, respectively). For fall, average daily gain (ADG) resulted …

Effects Of Dietary Copper, Zinc And Manganese Source And Level On The Acute Inflammatory Response Of Broilers, Chelsea Ellington

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Trace minerals, particularly copper, zinc and manganese, play a role in ensuring optimal immune function. To examine the effects of diets containing different levels and sources of trace minerals on the inflammatory response, Cobb 500 broilers were fed four experimental diets containing 5 mg/kg Cu and 45 mg/kg of Zn and Mn or 10 mg/kg Cu and 90 mg/kg Zn and Mn in either the sulfate or hydroxychloride form. When the broilers were 5 weeks of age, 16 μg of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was injected into the pulp of growing feathers (GF; 16 GF per chicken; 1 μg LPS per GF). …

Getting Over The Dam: Overcoming Institutional Barriers To The Recovery Of Atlantic Salmon By Navigating The Social-Science/Policy Interface, Melissa E. Flye

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The term governance has undergone somewhat of an evolution since its inception, originally describing the act of governing, it has come to represent a more collaborative form of governing which is distinct from hierarchical control models (Marin and Mayntz, 1991). Collaborative governance refers to the systems associated with public policy decision making and resource management which span the jurisdictional boundaries of public agencies, levels of government, and/or public and private spheres in order to pursue a public policy goal or outcome (Emerson et al., 2012). Environmental management is often considered an inherently collaborative effort, as ecological systems and species rarely …

Mammal Species Inventory Using Various Trapping Methods In Zone 4 Of Billy Barquedier National Park, Belize During Rainy Season, Mersady Redding

Animal Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

Belize is a small country, but it is extremely ecologically diverse. Based on the few studies conducted in Belize, the abundance of mammals is low but diversity is high. Particular findings note the number and identity of species differed between four sites in the Maya Mountains of Belize, indicating that a data set from a single site is not representative of the Neotropical region. Insufficient data is available to estimate current species richness of many areas in Belize, including Billy Barquedier National Park (BBNP). The objective of this study was to explore trapping and documentation methods of terrestrial mammals in …

Investigating The Contribution Of Instance-Reliant Learning In Visuomotor Adaptation And Its Generalization, Shancheng Bao

Theses and Dissertations

Motor adaptation has been of great interest in the past two decades as it reflects how movement skills are acquired and consolidated by the nervous system. In our recent studies, instance-reliant learning is considered as an essential component of visuomotor adaptation, since it plays a unique role in fast and automatized control of movement output. The goal of this dissertation is to investigate the nature of instance-reliant learning on two aspects: to determine the differential contributions of algorithmic learning and instance-reliant learning to visuomotor adaptation; and to determine the nature of movement instance involved in visuomotor adaptation and its generalization …

Functional Analysis In The Home Setting Of An Older Adult With Neurocognitive Disorder, Emily Norton

Masters Theses

Currently within the behavioral gerontology literature there are no published studies that include a functional assessment in the home setting. The primary goal of the present study was to address this gap by conducting a functional analysis on a challenging behavior of an older adult with neurocognitive disorder in the home. This study occurred in two phases. During phase one, researchers conducted an antecedent functional analysis on the bizarre speech of an 81-year-old female with suspected dementia across four conditions (television on, no interactions initiated; television on, interactions initiated; television off, no interactions initiated; television off, interactions initiated). Results from …

The Effects Of Foot And Udder Scoring On Cow And Calf Performance, Clayton Lee Mcguire

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Foot soundness and udder conformation are essential for longevity in beef cattle. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of foot angle (FA), claw set (CS), teat size (TS) and udder suspension (US) scores on cowherd performance. Data were analyzed for 1,685 observations on Angus-based cows over a four-year period. At weaning FA, CS, TS, and US were evaluated. Scores are based on nine-point scales. A score of one indicates straight pasterns, divergent toes, enlarged bottle shaped teats, and absence of a median suspensory ligament; nine indicates weak pasterns, curled toes, small symmetrical teats, and a tight …

Cost Effectiveness Of Greenhouse Gas Reductions Through Afforestation Of Agricultural Land In The Arkansas Delta, Karli A. Moore

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Sequestration of atmospheric carbon in forested lands offsets carbon emissions from other industries. Conversion of private lands, particularly agricultural tracts in marginal areas, to forests can bolster carbon abatement. The United States government agencies administer some voluntary, incentive-based programs to encourage landowners to adopt production practices with positive environmental outcomes. This policy stream can be used to increase transition of marginal agricultural land to forests, thereby creating new carbon sinks. We analyze an eleven-county study area in the Arkansas Delta to determine feasibility for a subsidy focused on carbon abatement through afforestation. This study area is significant for two reasons: …

The Role Of Gamma Oscillations And Cortical Inhibition In The Development Of Working Memory In Adolescence, Christopher P. Walker

Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)

Adolescence is a dynamic period of social, cognitive, and biological changes. In particular, working memory, the ability to actively encode and maintain information over a short period of time, develops early in childhood and gradually increases in capacity and stability during adolescence. The precise neurophysiological mechanism by which working memory capacity increases during adolescence is unclear. The objective of this investigation was to evaluate the role of cortical gamma-band (> 30 Hz) oscillations—which are associated with working memory in adults—for the development of working memory capacity in adolescents, and to identify the extent to which the temporal profile of gamma-aminobutyric …