Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

A Study Of The Effectiveness Of A Common Household Chemical For Maceration, Sara O'Neil Wyatt

LSU Master's Theses

Maceration is often a necessary component when working on a forensic case. Since it is not very common to get a case with fully skeletonized remains, the soft tissue must be removed for the forensic anthropologist to start their assessment. There are varying maceration techniques, but the goal is the same: to remove the soft tissue without damaging the bone The main purpose of my research is to examine a common household chemical, Drano® Max Gel, to determine its effectiveness for maceration. I tested two diluted solutions of Drano® Max Gel, 25% and 12.5%, both heated and unheated, to determine …

Opening Of Legal Year 2015: A Year For Pushing Boundaries, Alvin W. L. See, Man Yip

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

5 January 2015 marked the Opening of the Legal Year 2015. From the speeches made by the Attorney-General, the President of the Law Society, and the Chief Justice, the 50th year of Singapore’s independence is going to be a glorious year of pushing boundaries.

Americans Overestimate Social Class Mobility, Michael W. Kraus, Jacinth J. X. Tan

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

In this research we examine estimates of American social class mobility—the ability to move up or down in education and income status. Across studies, overestimates of class mobility were large and particularly likely among younger participants and those higher in subjective social class—both measured (Studies 1–3) and manipulated (Study 4). Class mobility overestimates were independent of general estimation errors (Study 3) and persisted after accounting for knowledge of class mobility assessed in terms of educational attainment and self-ratings. Experiments revealed that mobility overestimates were shaped by exposure to information about the genetic determinants of social class—a faux science article suggesting …

Human Consequences Of Climate Change, Climate Refugees: An Exploratory Essay, Frederick A. Snyder-Manetti

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

While planning my course schedule for the 2009 Spring Semester, I found myself desperately short of elective credits toward my Bachelor of Arts degree in Geography in order to graduate by the end of the 2010 Autumn Semester. From the limited course choices offered for the spring semester, only two worked with the other required courses I needed as well: Cultural & Global Competence and Global Hot Spots. Little did I know at the time, but the latter would prove to be the most stimulating course of my entire undergraduate geography program. Not only did this course forge within me …

The History And Evolution Of North American Ski Resort Map Style And Design, Amy Elizabeth Lippus

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The first official ski resort in North America opened to the public in 1936 in Sun Valley, Idaho. Today, there are over 400 resorts across the continent in constant competition with one another for customers. Ski maps were first introduced as navigational tools, but quickly became a means for advertising what the resorts had to offer. The desire to outshine rival resorts has produced thousands of unique ski maps over the years, forming a collection of maps that has never been comprehensively analyzed until now. The first phase of the thesis involved the gathering of historical and modern ski maps …

Engendering The Past: An Archaeological Examination Of The Precontact Lifeways Of Women At Yellowstone Lake, Yellowstone National Park, Cathy J. Beecher

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This thesis examines three lines of evidence within the precontact archaeological record around Yellowstone Lake, focusing on elucidating female-specific lifeways. This work is undertaken as a means to explore concepts of gender within precontact archaeological contexts. This aim is accomplished using statistical analysis of lithic tool distribution patterns, ethnohistoric information on plants found through archaeobotanical assays and the microspatial examination of cultural fire features.

Variation in the use of obsidian and chert for unifacial tool manufacture indicates potential restrictions on the manufacture of gender specific tools as these stone resources become less available. In addition, a frame-of-reference is built by …

Curbing Corruption, Financial Development And Income Inequality, Sourav Batabyal, Abdur Chowdhury

Economics Faculty Research and Publications

In recent years, many of the Commonwealth countries have experienced a reduction in income inequalities due to the development of financial markets and intermediaries. At the same time, widespread corruption among public officials, civil servants, or politicians from these countries have been well documented. A key public policy question is whether the return to financial sector development at the level of massive corruption, exacerbate income inequality, offsetting the benefits of financial development. Using a panel data of 30 Commonwealth countries over the period of 1995–2008, it is found that the high rates of corruption in the Commonwealth countries are crowding …

Economic And Traffic Impacts Following The Installation Of New Bicycle Facilities: A Denver Case Study, Stephen Antonio Rijo

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

America is currently experiencing a unique departure from the historical vehicle miles traveled (VMT) trend, often referred to as "peak travel." Decreasing VMT numbers suggest that the US is currently experiencing an unprecedented change in the way individuals utilize transportation systems. The following research calls on a need to understand the importance of improving alternative transportation infrastructure, namely cycling facilities, and how this impacts local businesses and their communities. This research informs the overarching question, "What are the economic and traffic impacts of cycling facilities?" A mixed methods analysis of retail sales tax, traffic count, and RTD transit access data …

Not Just Blowin' Smoke: Marijuana Legalization Initiatives And The 2012 Presidential Election, Steven Anderson

Masters Theses

Since 1996, numerous states have passed laws to allow use of marijuana for medical purposes. In 2012, Colorado and Washington became the first states to legalize the drug for recreational use. The two recreational legalization movements, along with many medical laws, were passed via citizen's referendum (passed by the legislature and approved by voters) or initiative (placed on ballot by petition and approved by voters). This paper seeks to examine the link between support for the legalization movements in three states (Colorado, Washington and Oregon) and support for President Obama in the 2012 Presidential Election. Ten different variables are examined …

College Students Self-Presentation And Online Social Networks, Lauren J. Stehlik

Masters Theses

College students are active users of social networking sites, and they share a variety of information via their profiles. Employers and graduate schools are one population viewing potential candidate's social networking profiles. This study aimed to explore graduating college students' perception of appropriate or inappropriate content on their social networking sites as they went through the job searching process. College students are users of several social networking sites; however, this study focused on users of Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. The researcher conducted one-on-one interviews and an online analysis site called Reppler.com with seven graduating college seniors to learn about perceptions …

The Field Trip, Randy Harritan

Mighty Pen Project Anthology & Archive

A soldier grapples with horrifying events in Vietnam, then comes home to grapple with the effects those events have had on him.

Articles, stories, and other compositions in this archive were written by participants in the Mighty Pen Project. The program, developed by author David L. Robbins, and in partnership with Virginia Commonwealth University and the Virginia War Memorial in Richmond, Virginia, offers veterans and their family members a customized twelve-week writing class, free of charge. The program encourages, supports, and assists participants in sharing their stories and experiences of military experience so both writer and audience may benefit.

Blue Devil 2, Malik Hodari

Mighty Pen Project Anthology & Archive

A soldier in Vietnam continues to face interpersonal conflict as he fights to keep his team alive and complete his mission.

Articles, stories, and other compositions in this archive were written by participants in the Mighty Pen Project. The program, developed by author David L. Robbins, and in partnership with Virginia Commonwealth University and the Virginia War Memorial in Richmond, Virginia, offers veterans and their family members a customized twelve-week writing class, free of charge. The program encourages, supports, and assists participants in sharing their stories and experiences of military experience so both writer and audience may benefit.

Blue Devil 1, Malik Hodari

Mighty Pen Project Anthology & Archive

A soldier in Vietnam keeps his team alive and moving while grappling with interpersonal conflict.

Articles, stories, and other compositions in this archive were written by participants in the Mighty Pen Project. The program, developed by author David L. Robbins, and in partnership with Virginia Commonwealth University and the Virginia War Memorial in Richmond, Virginia, offers veterans and their family members a customized twelve-week writing class, free of charge. The program encourages, supports, and assists participants in sharing their stories and experiences of military experience so both writer and audience may benefit.

Decision-Making In The Dark: How Pre-Trial Errors Change The Narrative In Criminal Jury Trials, Kara Mackillop, Neil Vidmar

Faculty Scholarship

Over the past decade and a half, a great deal of attention has rightfully been given to the issue of wrongful convictions. In 2003, Jim Dwyer, Peter Neufeld and Barry Scheck published Actual Innocence, an eyeopening treatise on the reality of wrongful convictions in the United States. In the years since, more than 1400 innocent persons have been exonerated, and a very diverse research community of attorneys, academics, social scientists, and activists has developed in response to the realization offlaws in our criminal justice system. In 2012, Brandon Garrett's Convicting the Innocent quantitatively evaluated the first 250 DNA exonerations and …

Agro/Hort403/803: Scientific Writing And Communication—A Peer Review Of Teaching Project Inquiry Portfolio, Brian M. Waters

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

Scientific writing is a skill that is useful for science students, since many of them will write about their research in theses, dissertations or journal articles. However, many students have not been trained in scientific writing, and the task seems insurmountable to some, who can develop a “fear of writing” that prevents them from finishing their program or manuscript. To effectively teach scientific writing, the instructor should devote the most effort to the most effective learning activities. Thus, this inquiry portfolio addresses two Research Questions: 1) “What is the most effective activity in my course for student learning?”, and 2) …

Fors 401: Forensic Biochemistry—A Peer Review Of Teaching Project Inquiry Portfolio, Ashley Hall

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

Students who participate in active and experiential learning activities develop a better understanding of basic scientific principles and are also more likely to be retained in a STEM discipline. Developing such activities, however, can be difficult. In the present study, we sought to develop classroom activities to engage university students and increase understanding of the theory and practice of forensic science. One common accessory amongst the target audience was the ever-present media, both social and popular (entertainment). In fact, a majority of students report watching at least one of the many popular forensic science shows on TV. Therefore, we hypothesized …

Geog 140: Introduction To Human Geography—A Peer Review Of Teaching Project Inquiry Portfolio, Katherine Nashleanas

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

Large lecture classes of 100 students or more present unique challenges to both teaching and learning. The common method of “delivery” by instructors is lecture, often augmented by a set of Power Point slides; and, while the research literature shows that this is the more traditional way of teaching, increasingly it is becoming apparent that this method of instruction often does not reach students in the way we hope and often assume (Harvard Magazine 2015). Most of the students populating these classes are born of the Digital Age and have different expectations for learning, requiring new approaches in the classroom …

Adpr 450/850: Public Relations Theory And Strategy—A Peer Review Of Teaching Project Benchmark Portfolio, Ming Wang

UNL Faculty Course Portfolios

I decided to join the Peer Review of Teaching program to achieve the following three objectives: to better align course objectives with course content, to improve ways of documenting and assessing student learning, and to fit the course into the broader curriculum.

Participation in the Peer Review of Teaching program has been most illuminating and beneficial. I got to focus on tackling three tangible objectives for my ADPR 450/850 Public Relations Theory and Strategy class. Then I got to apply many ideas introduced in this program, such as backward design principle and assessment methods, in my teaching. I had the …

Precision Agriculture Usage And Big Agriculture Data, Mike Castle, Bradley D. Lubben, Joe Luck

Cornhusker Economics

Agricultural producers have quickly adopted precision agriculture technologies in recent years. With the availability of global positioning system (GPS) signals and other technology, producers can track yields, steer and control equipment, monitor field conditions, and manage inputs at very precise levels across a field, offering the potential to substantially increase productivity and profitability.

The Fake Bad Scale: Malingering Or Litigation Response Syndrome -- Which Is It?, David S. Nichols, Carlton S. Gass

Archives of Assessment Psychology

This report examines the similarity of items on the MMPI-2 and MMPI-2-RF versions of the Lees-Haley, et al. (1991) Symptom Validity (formerly Fake Bad) Scale (FBS; FBS-r) with emotional and somatic symptoms described in an earlier article by Lees-Haley as credible stress reactions to litigation involvement: the Litigation Response Syndrome (Lees-Haley, 1988). Substantial overlap was found between the FBS items and these earlier symptom descriptions, with a majority of the litigation-based stress items found on both the FBS and FBS-r. The probable impact of credible symptom reporting on FBS/FBS-r scores in personal injury litigation is discussed.

Development And Validation Of The Muscle Pictorial Measure, Meghan M. Gillen, Charlotte N. Markey

Archives of Assessment Psychology

Most pictorial measures of body perceptions vary by adiposity rather than muscularity. Measures examining muscularity have typically been created for men. We created pictorial measures that vary by muscularity and can be used by both genders. Two samples of racially/ethnically diverse undergraduates (N = 279 total) completed a survey including the new pictorial measure, weight-lifting behavior, and drive for muscularity. Weight and height were measured for one sample while self-reported for the second sample. Two weeks later, participants completed the pictorial measure online. Results indicate that this measure has satisfactory test-retest reliability, convergent validity, and cultural validity, and can be …

Development And Factor Structure Of The Adlerian Personality Priority Assessment, Dalena L. Dillman Taylor, Dee C. Ray, Robin K. Henson

Archives of Assessment Psychology

This study aimed to explore the existence of the theoretical constructs of Adlerian personality priorities, a component in conceptualizing clients’: (a) pleasing, (b) control, (c) comfort, and (d) superiority (Kefir, 1971). Researchers implemented a multi-step process for the development of the Adlerian Personality Priority Assessment (APPA), including a focus group, expert panel, pilot study, and an exploratory factor analysis (EFA). For the EFA with the APPA (N = 393) identified a four-factor structure, supporting the construct validity of the original four Adlerian personality priorities. Professional counselors have used personality priorities since their inception in 1971 as a means to conceptualize …

Critique And Transformation: On The Hypothetical Nature Of Ecosystem Service Value And Its Neo-Marxist, Liberal And Pragmatist Criticisms, Andony P. Melathopoulos, Alex Stoner

Journal Articles

Ecosystem service valuation (ESV) attempts to transform the opposition of human economic necessity and ecological conservation by valuing the latter in terms of the services rendered by the former. However, despite a number of ESV-inspired sustainability initiatives since the 1990s, global ecological degradation continues to accelerate. This suggests that ESV has fallen far short of its goals of sustainable social transformation—a failure which has generated considerable criticism. This paper reviews three prominent lines of ESV criticism: 1) the neo-Marxist criticism, which emphasizes the “fictitious” character of ecosystem commodities; 2) the liberal criticism through Friedrich Hayek's concept “scientistic objectivism”; and 3) …

Bridging The Blue-Green Divide: The Role Of Environmental Ngos In Tackling Environmental Problems In Taiwan, Yttrium Sua

Pomona Senior Theses

This thesis attempts to provide a brief historical outline of the environmental movement in Taiwan and the unique political situation that has directly affected how the movement has progressed. Thereafter, it looks at some examples of environmental disputes that have occurred in recent years, paying special attention to the ways the environmental movement has interacted with the government. This provides the background to frame the analysis, which will shed light on the reasons for the current state of distrust and antagonistic interactions between the environmental movement and the government. Finally, the thesis evaluates whether such interactions with the government is …

The San Antonio Wash: Addressing The Gap Between Claremont And Upland, Benjamin C. Hackenberger

Pomona Senior Theses

Access to water from San Antonio Creek was critical in Claremont’s growth from a small stop on the Santa Fe Railroad to an agricultural powerhouse and an elite college town. While Claremont has sought to distinguish itself from surrounding communities since its founding in 1882, the innovative Pomona Valley Protective Association (PVPA) aligned Claremont with the City of Pomona and its other neighbors in a scheme to conserve the Creek’s resources at the turn of the century. Organized around the discovery of local confined aquifers and the development of a strategy to recharge them with water from the San Antonio …

Looking Beyond Fossil Fuel Divestment: Combating Climate Change In Higher Education, Robin Xu

Pomona Senior Theses

The young fossil fuel divestment movement is altering the landscape of climate change activism on US campuses. Student-run divestment campaigns are now pushing for institutions of higher education to withdraw their investments from the top 200 public fossil fuel companies. Despite student fervor, however, divestment has remained a controversial tactic for combating climate change. The first half of this thesis examines the stated motives of a selection of institutions that have officially agreed or declined to divest, and investigates the hypothesis that pushing for divestment alone will not achieve broad success because it does not appeal to a wide enough …

2015 January, Office Of Communications & Marketing, Morehead State University.

Morehead State Press Release Archive, 1961 to the Present

Press releases for January of 2015.

2015 Web Features, Office Of Communications & Marketing, Morehead State University.

Morehead State Press Release Archive, 1961 to the Present

Web features for 2015.

Stratification Economics And Identity Economics, John B. Davis

Economics Faculty Research and Publications

Stratification economics represents an important new approach devoted to explaining economic inequality in terms of how social groups are separated or stratified along economic lines. This paper combines stratification economics with identity economics to address complications that the phenomenon of intersectionality – people having multiple social group identities – creates for stratification economics. It distinguishes two types of social identities recognized by social psychologists, categorical and relational social identities, and uses this distinction to explain how individuals’ personal identities, understood as ordered sets of social identities, can be seen to be both socially and self-constructed. Individuals order and rank their …

Revenue Sharing And Within-Team Payroll Inequality In Major League Baseball, Nicholas A. Jolly

Economics Faculty Research and Publications

Using data from the 2000 to 2012 Major League Baseball seasons, this article investigates how changes to revenue sharing in the 2007 collective bargaining agreement altered within-team payroll inequality. Results indicate that inequality within teams decreased after the 2007 bargaining agreement. This reduced inequity is concentrated among those teams that were already experiencing relatively higher levels of inequality. This indicates that changes to revenue sharing should help increase competitive balance within the league. Additionally, the reduction in inequality occurs only among hitters and not pitchers. These results highlight how collective bargaining can have heterogeneous effects on groups of workers despite …