Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Why Anonymous Sources Are Used: Inside The Different Situations Calling For Reporter-Source Confidentiality, Erich Eisenach

College of Journalism and Mass Communications: Theses

Anonymous sources for years have been a hard thing for editors to figure out.  In journalism, they’re the kind of factor that editors can’t live with, and yet they can’t live without.  That’s because for years, anonymous sources have been critical to the completion of many major stories.  Some of the situations they are used in are obvious, and yet some are not so obvious.  In the thesis below, which includes material from two of the most veteran journalists within Nebraska borders, I talk about anonymous sources and why they are used in certain situations.  Here, I acknowledge the people …

Using Textual Features To Predict Popular Content On Digg, Paul H. Miller

Department of English: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Over the past few years, collaborative rating sites, such as Netflix, Digg and Stumble, have become increasingly prevalent sites for users to find trending content.  I used various data mining techniques to study Digg, a social news site, to examine the influence of content on popularity.  What influence does content have on popularity, and what influence does content have on users’ decisions?  Overwhelmingly, prior studies have consistently shown that predicting popularity based on content is difficult and maybe even inherently impossible.  The same submission can have multiple outcomes and content neither determines popularity, nor individual user decisions.  My results show …

Word 2010 Fonts Embedding Issues Resolved, Paul Royster,

Institutional Repository Information

Earlier this week I was “upgraded” from MS Office 2007 to MS Office 2010. In addition to the annoyance of hours spent reconstructing my former settings and toolbars for Word, I also discovered another issue: Word files saved as PDF refused to embed some fonts, specifically those deriving from Excel or other charts and graphs inserted into Word documents.

Previously, Word 2007 had interoperated with an Adobe Acrobat plug-in to properly convert such files and embed all fonts according to Acrobat’s preference settings. But for Word 2010, there is no working Acrobat plug-in, and Microsoft has proudly included their own …

Three Essays On Fdi In China, Mingming Pan

College of Business: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) has contributed a great deal to China’s extraordinary growth by injecting capital into the economy, creating jobs, transferring technology and knowledge, enhancing trade, bringing in competition for local enterprises, improving the quality of local labor and intermediate goods suppliers, and connecting China’s gradually opening economy to the global market. For over a decade, China has been the second largest recipient of inward FDI in the world behind the United States. In 2009, China received $95 billion, which is 8.5% of the world’s total. However, the large amount of inward FDI has been unevenly distributed across Chinese …

Infertility Help Seeking And Social Support: Do Conventional Theories Explain Internet Behaviors And Outcomes, Kathleen S. Slauson-Blevins

Department of Sociology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This dissertation uses data from the National Survey of Fertility Barriers (NSFB), a nationally representative sample, to assess factors associated with face-to-face and internet help seeking (study 1) and perceived social support (study 2).  In study one, I examine whether the General Help Seeking Model, a theory that has been used to explain in-person help seeking, generalizes to internet help seeking. I assess four types of help seeking:  (1) no help seeking, (2) only internet help seeking, (3)only medical help seeking, and (4) both online and medical help seeking.  Results suggest that online help seeking is differentiated from in person …

Exploring Student Perceptions To Explain The Relationship Between Physical Activity And Academic Achievement In Adolescents: A Mixed Methods Study, Megan J. Hylok

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

A nationwide survey conducted by the Center for Disease Control in 2007 reported 65% of high school students did not meet the recommendation that youth participate in at least 60 minutes of physical activity most days of the week (CDC, 2008). While research has focused its attention primarily on bodily health, growing evidence supports the benefits of physical activity on brain health (Ratey & Hagerman, 2008). Physical activity is important and many adolescents are not meeting the recommendation, therefore, it is important to explore the adolescent perceptions to understand which factors influence physical activity participation. The significance of this study …

Diet And Disease: Subsistence Change And Tuberculosis Among The Pawnee, Omaha And Winnebago In The Nineteenth Century, Owen J. O'Reilly

Department of Anthropology: Theses and Student Research

The mid- to late nineteenth century was the beginning of the reservation era for most Native Americans, ushering in a series of unprecedented changes that affected the cultural traditions and physical health of groups across the United States. For the Pawnee, Omaha and Winnebago in Nebraska, changes in subsistence patterns not only destroyed traditions but influenced the spread of disease and malnutrition. Government rations, consisting largely of wheat flour, beef, bacon, pork, sugar and coffee, were a drastic departure from the traditional diet of lean bison meat, corn, beans, squash and wild food and those who depended on these rations …

Ready, Set...Pitch: Marketing Yourself With A High Five For The Nta Promarks Spring Meeting, Connie I. Reimers-Hild

Kimmel Education and Research Center: Presentations and White Papers

A workshop presented at the NTA Promarks Spring Meeting designed to help them develop their elevator pitches using Dr. Connie's High 5 Elevator Pitch method

Leading Innovation: Creating A Culture Of Sustainability Workshop Presentation, Connie I. Reimers-Hild

Kimmel Education and Research Center: Faculty and Staff Publications

A workshop designed to lead sustainable innovation with a focus on Dr. Connie's "5 Rays" of Innovation

Secular Salvation: Sacred Rhetorical Invention In The String Theory Movement, Brent Yergensen

Department of Communication Studies: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

String theory is argued by its proponents to be the Theory of Everything. It achieves this status in physics because it provides unification for contradictory laws of physics, namely quantum mechanics and general relativity. While based on advanced theoretical mathematics, its public discourse is growing in prevalence and its rhetorical power is leading to a scientific revolution, even among the public. By presenting a history of continual discovery of extra dimensions, string theory proponents draw upon key thinkers in physics such as Theodor Kaluza and Albert Einstein and frame them as pioneers for the emergence of string theory.

Popularization of …

Leading Innovation: Creating A Culture Of Sustainability Workbook, Connie I. Reimers-Hild

Kimmel Education and Research Center: Faculty and Staff Publications

A workbook designed to compliment the workshop, "Leading Innovation:  Creating a Culture of Sustainability" and focused on teaching Dr. Connie's 5 Rays of Innovation

Levels Of Response In Experiential Conceptualizations Of Neighborhood: The Potential For Multiple Versions Of This Place Construct, Cynthia M. Williams

Department of Geography: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

In the literature, numerous theoretical perspectives have defined and interpreted what is meant by “neighborhood.” A criticism of these perspectives is a lack of a universal definition, with no one-to-one empirical counterpart. The intent of this dissertation is to develop experiential conceptualizations of the construct neighborhood. Residents, those who experience and interact on a daily bases will provide the meaning and interpretation of what is meant by neighborhood.

The “levels of response” are the means of identifying and interpreting the systematic differences in the cognitive processing involved in the construal of neighborhood. Five cognitive levels of response were identified: Affective, …

Leading Innovation: Creating A Culture Of Sustainability For Communities, Connie I. Reimers-Hild

Kimmel Education and Research Center: Presentations and White Papers

Innovation is as essential to communities as it is to businesses and other organizations.  This innovation workshop focused on core elements of leading innovation in communities.

March 2011 Download Summary & Most Downloaded Articles

Institutional Repository Information

Number of articles = 47,914
Open Access = 36,464
Other (ProQuest ETD's) = 11,450

Articles downloaded = 29,750
pct of OA articles downloaded = 82%

Number of Downloads = 309,579
avg per OA article = 8.5

Number of hits (OA articles) = 429,844
avg per OA article = 11.8
download/hit ratio = 72%

A list of 235 articles with 100 or more downloads is included.

Examining Physiological, Physical, And Cognitive Changes Over A Thirteen Week Training Program, Vanessa L. Roof

Department of Psychology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Ten members of Lincoln Fire and Rescue in Lincoln,  Nebraska agreed to participate in a thirteen week tactical strength and conditioning fitness program conducted by Athology Inc. that included a Physiological, Physical, and Cognitive Component.  Participants completed three workouts per week lasting approximately 90 minutes each, conducted by fitness trainers from Athology Inc.  Participants completed lab draws at the beginning and end of the program as well as an EKG at the onset of the program, conducted off-site at a local hospital.  Participants completed performance and agility testing at the onset and end of the program.  Lastly, participants completed cognitive …

The Role Of Sorghum In Food Security In Central America, Lloyd W. Rooney

INTSORMIL Presentations

Discusses the qualities of sorghum that make it suitable for human consumption, with a focus on its use in Central America.

Saŋɔ Baara Cogo N´A Feere Cogo Gafe: Mogo Minuwye Gafe Dilan Oye = Fiche De Production Et De Commercialisation Du Mil = Production And Marketing Of Millet, Botorou Ouendeba, Niaba Teme

USAID Mali Mission Awards

U.S. government publication about millet production and sales in West Africa. In the Bambara language.

Preparing Tomorrow’S Fire Professionals: Integration Of Education, Training, And Experience Through Science-Management Partnerships, Gail Wells

Joint Fire Science Program Digests

In this issue of Fire Science Digest, we explore the career and preparation challenges faced by forest and rangeland fire professionals, both new and seasoned. As the job description grows more complex, a well-rounded background in current and emerging areas of fi re science and fi re management becomes critical. Today’s top professionals are approaching retirement, and tomorrow’s fi re professionals need to be adequately prepared to succeed them.

Evolution Of Classroom Technology, Marcia L. Dority Baker, Richard Leiter

Marvin and Virginia Schmid Law Library: Faculty Publications

The use of classroom technology to assist with teaching has evolved over the past 40 years. The standard chalkboard, chalk and eraser morphed into the white board and markers; overhead projectors sit in inventory while digital projectors hang overhead in the classrooms. All the classrooms at McCollum Hall have been remodeled, transformed or built to accommodate technology use by faculty and students. After reviewing numerous issues of the Nebraska Transcript from 1970 through the present, it was fascinating to see just how much things have changed technologically in such a relatively short period of time. Included below are the technology …

Using A Geographic Information System To Define Regions Of Grape-Cultivar Suitability In Nebraska, Ting Chen

Department of Geography: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The thesis was undertaken to develop a methodology and digital tool, based upon the use of Geographic Information System (GIS) technology, for delineating specific regions within the state of Nebraska that are suitable for the cultivation of two selected grape hybrids. The successful cultivation of grapes for producing wine requires knowledge of the physical and environmental conditions characterizing the local landscape. GIS technology allows the integration of multiple layers to be analyzed simultaneously, which
can provide prospective grape growers with necessary information upon which to base their management decision. In the study, nine GIS variables/layers including growing degree days, length …

Cordage, Textiles, And The Late Pleistocene Peopling Of The Andes, Edward A. Jolie, Thomas F. Lynch, Phil R. Geib, J. M. Adovasio

Department of Anthropology: Faculty Publications

Harsh high-altitude environments were among the last landscapes to be settled by humans during the Late Pleistocene between ∼15,000 and 11,000 calendar years before present (cal yr BP). Successful colonization required physiological adaptations to hypoxia and cultural adaptations to limited resources and cold temperatures. How and when humans colonized Andean South America has been poorly understood owing to controversial early archaeological sites and questions about the impact of environmental factors, including the presence of glaciers. Here we report the reexamination and direct dating of six finely woven textiles and cords from Guitarrero Cave, Peru, that identify South America’s earliest textiles …

After The Fire Is Out, Elise Lequire

Joint Fire Science Program Digests

Even before firefighters have left a burn site, a second wave of specialists is deployed. Their task: to assess the burn site; determine the level of risk to life, property, and ecological resources; and determine quickly the most effective postfire treatments for emergency stabilization and initial rehabilitation of the site. For the past 13 years, the Joint Fire Science Program (JFSP) has funded research on this critical phase of work, which often goes unnoticed after the fire is out. With support from the JFSP, scientists have made great strides in improving the tools available to assess postfire risks and evaluate …

Dr. Connie's Inner Leader Coaching Ecosystem, Connie I. Reimers-Hild

Kimmel Education and Research Center: Faculty and Staff Publications

Dr. Connie’s Inner Leader Coaching Ecosystem recognizes that life is a journey

with its ups and downs, joys and sorrows, positive and negative changes.

It is designed to blend the spiritual with the physical and material. Most importantly,

it is an ecosystem that recognizes the importance of living fully while making

desired changes and adjustments. A central focus of Dr. Connie’s Inner Leader

Coaching Ecosystem is to help clients live more fully while on their journey to

develop their inner leader and move towards their personal vision. It is not a

coaching process focused on solely reaching goals and achieving …

A Survey Of Agricultural Productivity And Nutritional Status In Rural South Wollo, Ethiopia, Anne M. Cafer

Department of Anthropology: Theses and Student Research

Although many studies have focused on the plight, poverty, and severe malnutrition of rural Ethiopians, few have managed to incorporate qualitative and quantitative data to examine connections between health status and food production. This project is unique in that both types of data are combined and anthropometric measurements and a structured questionnaire are used to explore the link between agriculture, development, and nutrition. Additionally the research design incorporated feedback from local development agents, faculty and staff at an Ethiopian university, and community leaders. A survey of 120 households in seven villages within two districts of South Wollo revealed that a …

Nebraska Transcript (University Of Nebraska College Of Law), Volume 44, Number 1, Spring 2011

Nebraska Transcript

Dean’s Message 2
Faculty Update Profile: Alan Frank 4
Mexico’s Criminal Justice Transformation 6
Faculty Notes 8
Network Neutrality 14
Lepard Leads Human Rights Project 16
Blankley’s Passion for ADR 17
Burkstrand-Reid’s Trust to Teach 18
Feature: Dean Susan Poser 19
Around the College Brummond’s New Role 22
Kluver Leads Admissions Efforts 23
Our Future in the Big Ten: Admissions 24
Job Market’s Impact on CSO 26
Evolution of Technology 28
Student Accolades 32
2010 Family Traditions Ceremony 34
Hitler’s Court 36
Recent Facility Renovations 37
Our Alumni Eilers: A Global Career 38
Nearhood Admissions Office 39
Winter Scholarship 40 …

The Political Consequences Of Population Consolidation In Nebraska, Diane L. Duffin

Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences (through 2013)

In recent decades, the migration that has long been characteristic of life in the Great Plains has meant the steady relocation of population from rural to metropolitan counties. While much has been written about the social and economic consequences of this migration, far less is known of its political consequences. In Nebraska, the least-populated counties experience the most severe out-migration, and are the most reliably Republican. To discern a relationship between population migration and political outcomes, this study analyzes the six open-seat races for United States senator that have occurred in Nebraska since 1976. An econometric model that explains Democratic …

Historic And Contemporary Trends Of The Conservation Reserve Program And Ring-Necked Pheasants In South Dakota, Christopher R. Laingen

Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences (through 2013)

Over the past century, the interactions between agricultural land use and government cropland retirement programs have affected pheasant population change. Two government land retirement programs that returned croplands to grasslands, Soil Bank in the 1960s and the current Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), help to illustrate these connections. From 2007 to 2010, South Dakota lost 41% of its CRP lands and experienced an 18% decline in pheasants per mile. However, because of where CRP expirations have occurred and where pheasant populations are found, some regional variability is seen. Western South Dakota (Region 1) had an 80% increase in pheasants per mile …

Review Of Immigrants In Prairie Cities: Ethnic Diversity In Twentieth-Century Canada. By Royden Loewen And Gerald Friesen., Lori Wilkinson

Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences (through 2013)

Loewen and Friesen trace the origins of public concern about the adverse influence of immigrants in terms of increased competition for jobs, threats to social cohesion, questioning the loyalties of newcomers at the beginning of the 20th century--issues remarkably similar to the mythology describing immigrants in western societies today. Readers may be tempted to ask, "If the situation in the 1900s is so similar to today's, why read this book?" Not only will readers get a sense of the longevity of these and other myths surrounding migration, they will learn about the creation of ethnic culture in the prairies and …

Review Of Hollowing Out The Middle: The Rural Brain Drain And What It Means For America. By Patrick J. Carr And Maria J. Kefalas., Peter F. Korsching

Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences (through 2013)

"Hollowing out the middle" refers to the loss of the well-educated young adults in rural communities of America's Heartland-the Corn Belt and Great Plains. Declining rural communities invest their meager resources to educate their brightest youth, thereby providing them opportunities for rewarding careers in distant cities. This further contributes to the communities' woes because it guarantees not only population loss, but also loss of expertise and leadership that could help them solve their problems. Carr and Kefalas's contribution to understanding the dilemma of rural communities promoting and supporting the loss of the best and brightest is through an in-depth analysis …

Review Of Weird City: Sense Of Place And Creative Resistance In Austin, Texas. By Joshua Long, Sally Caldwell

Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences (through 2013)

Joshua Long makes a fine contribution to the literature on urban places with Weird City. It is written in a way that makes it a natural for students of urban geography and an equally solid choice for classes devoted to urban sociology, community organization, urban planning, or public history. The book provides an in-depth look at the cultural landscape in a specific urban location. The book is well documented and includes a relevant and well-written annotated glossary of terms that is, regrettably, too short. In sum, Long has given us the sort of writing that appeals beyond the classroom. He …