Dancing in/out/around/about the closet: narrating autoethnographic agency from [a] marginalized voice

Department Head: Sue Pendell.2010 Summer.Includes bibliographical references (pages 115-120).The purposes of this study were threefold: (1) to understand the significance of autoethnography with the communication studies field; (2) to question the relationship between/within theoretical frameworks on identity, voice, and agency; and (3) to theorize on the affects of coming out through the lenses of identity, voice, and agency from an autoethnographic perspective. In short, the study finds autoethnographic perspectives to be a fruitful endeavor for communication scholars seeking to understand a more holistic picture of the human condition, while calling for more research to enhance theoretical conceptualizations of identity, voice, and agency. Furthermore, this study suggests that autoethnographic perspectives can offer voice to otherwise silenced identities, while also providing re/presentations for individuals who lack representation in and/or outside of the academy. Finally, this study urges individuals who avow to being an ally for marginalized individuals/groups to actively voice their support in order to create more comfortable/safe spaces within and/or outside of the classroom

Grid cell co-activity patterns remain stable across different behavioral states and experiences

Grid cells in the medial entorhinal cortex have been well studied while animals are exploring their environment; however, what they do when an animal is not navigating is less clear. Other cell types in the entorhinal-hippocampal network appear to have memory-related activity when an animal is inactive, so what grid cells do during quiescence is an important question. If grid cells show activity similar to place cells during rest and sleep, then it would imply that grid cells play an active role in memory functions rather than simply providing current sensory information to the hippocampus. Models have been proposed that make testable predictions about grid cell activity when spatial input is absent. The continuous attractor network model of grid cell pattern formation posits that grid cell patterning is a result of network connections between grid cells. As a result of this connectivity, these models hypothesize that grid cell co-activity patterns should be the same during sleep as during active navigation. In my first study, I investigated how spike time correlations between grid cell pairs during sleep compared to spike time correlations between the same grid cell pairs during waking activity. I found that the same correlation patterns were present regardless of whether spatial information was available to grid cells (i.e., during active navigation) or whether sensory input was absent (i.e., during sleep). These results support the continuous attractor network model hypothesis. In my second study, I examined whether novel experience changed grid cell co-activity patterns during active waking behaviors, rest, and sleep. I found that spike time correlations between grid cell pairs remained stable across behavioral states regardless of experience. In my last study, I looked at organized sequences of firing in grid cell ensembles to examine whether small changes in correlations led to detectable changes in more complex ensemble representations of experience. I found that grid cell ensemble activity did not appear to be influenced by different behaviors or novel experience. Taken together, these results suggest that grid cells are part of a low-dimensional, continuous attractor network and that grid cell activity patterns during sleep reflect connections in the grid cell network rather than representing specific experiences.Neuroscienc

Development of instrumentation for the investigation of surface regeneration for candle filters

Two methods of improving efficiency of coal based power generation are integrated gasification combined-cycle (IGCC) and pressurized fluidized-bed combustion (PFBC). Both of these options require high-temperature gas stream particle cleanup for optimum efficiency. Candle filters in a pressurized vessel have received the greatest amount of attention in dealing with this topic, but problems still persist and there does not seem to be clear-cut answer to the problem. This research is an investigation of the candle filter cleaning process, a process known as surface regeneration.;The objective of this research program has been to develop the instrumentation necessary to investigate the surface regeneration process in a room temperature test facility (RTTF).;For this project a room temperature chamber was built to observe the candle filter cleaning process, denoted as surface regeneration. Instrumentation was installed so that pressure histories could be obtained. The pressure histories were timed with digital photographs taken so that an approximation could be made of the pressure drop across the filter required for filter ash crack initiation

Hyperinflation in Venezuela: How to Address the Problem

Massive amounts of hyperinflation have been ravaging Venezuela for years. Forbes reported that the annual inflation rate for Venezuela in 2018 was 80,000%. To put this in perspective, an inflation rate this high doubles prices nearly every two weeks. Inflation rates this high haven’t been seen since Zimbabwe in the 2000s and Germany in the 1920s. Venezuela’s high inflation levels are due to the sum total effect of relying too heavily on imports for basic goods, depending on oil as its main export, inefficient government industries, and governmental corruption. While this would have been enough to warrent a thesis on its own, there is more to the story of hyperinflation in Venezuela. Beneath the current economic crisis is a political power struggle. On one side is the current President Nicolas Maduro, head of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela. Challenging him is the interim President of the National Assembly Juan Guaido, from the Popular Will party. To complicate matters further, the United States officially recognized Guaido as the legitimate president of Venezuela. The intersectionality of econoimcs and politics is what intrigued me about Venezuela’s situation. As I started research, I learned that the easiest method for fighting hyperinflation, dollarization, is politically unavailable to President Maduro. Doing so would be seen as a sign of defeat for the leader who has spent so much time denouncing the United States. From here, I started to expand my search for other ways in which Venezuela might be able to fix its economy. In my thesis, I aim to detail what hyperinflation is, where it has occurred in the past, and the solutions those countries employed to get their economies back on track. I will then explore how Venezuela got to the point it is today in regards to their inflation rate and how the solutions previously examined might be successful or unsuccessful. With increasing tensions between the U.S. and Venezuela, it will be interesting to examine how the unique political situation of Venezuela affects the options for remedying the hyperinflation of the country. I will analyze both the economic as well as the political viability of any and all proposed solutions to the Venezuelan situation.Humanitie

Landscape Epidemiology and Machine Learning: A Geospatial Approach to Modeling West Nile Virus Risk in the United States

The complex interactions between human health and the physical landscape and environment have been recognized, if not fully understood, since the ancient Greeks. Landscape epidemiology, sometimes called spatial epidemiology, is a sub-discipline of medical geography that uses environmental conditions as explanatory variables in the study of disease or other health phenomena. This theory suggests that pathogenic organisms (whether germs or larger vector and host species) are subject to environmental conditions that can be observed on the landscape, and by identifying where such organisms are likely to exist, areas at greatest risk of the disease can be derived. Machine learning is a sub-discipline of artificial intelligence that can be used to create predictive models from large and complex datasets. West Nile virus (WNV) is a relatively new infectious disease in the United States, and has a fairly well-understood transmission cycle that is believed to be highly dependent on environmental conditions. This study takes a geospatial approach to the study of WNV risk, using both landscape epidemiology and machine learning techniques. A combination of remotely sensed and in situ variables are used to predict WNV incidence with a correlation coefficient as high as 0.86. A novel method of mitigating the small numbers problem is also tested and ultimately discarded. Finally a consistent spatial pattern of model errors is identified, indicating the chosen variables are capable of predicting WNV disease risk across most of the United States, but are inadequate in the northern Great Plains region of the US

Dismantling the Public's Right to Know

Under the Bush administration, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is slowly dismantling its flagship environmental information tool--the Toxic Release Inventory (TRI). The program has been protected and improved for over the last 15 years, serving as a constant example of the vital role information plays in a democracy. Unfortunately, the program's success has made it a target for those that seek to reduce corporate oversight and accountability

Abusive supervision and organizational citizenship behaviors: An examination of potential boundary conditions: Working paper series--09-11

This study focuses on the boundary conditions of the relationship between abusive supervision and organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs). Previous research has shown that employees reciprocate for abusive supervision by withholding discretionary OCBs (for a full review, see Tepper, 2007). This work contributes to the abusive supervision research by adding two important moderating variables, namely dyadic duration and satisfaction with pay. Results indicate that the negative relationship between abusive supervision and OCBs is more pronounced when employees have been supervised by a particular manager for a longer period of time and when employees are less satisfied with their compensation

The Influence of Women and Racial Minorities Under Panel Decision Making on the U.S. Court of Appeals

This paper assesses the impact of gender and race on judicial decisions on the federal Court of Appeals, paying particular attention to the institutional nuances of decision-making on three-judge appellate panels within circuits. Its central question is whether and how racial minority and women judges influence legal policy on issues thought to be of particular concern to women and minorities. Proper analysis of this question requires investigating whether women and minority judges influence the decisions of other panel members. The authors find that the norm of unanimity on panels grants women influence over outcomes even when they are outnumbered on a panel

A Chromosomal Deletion and New Frameshift Mutation Cause ARSACS in an African-American

Autosomal Recessive Spastic Ataxia of Charlevoix-Saguenay (ARSACS) is a rare, progressive, neurodegenerative disease characterized by ataxia, spasticity and polyneuropathy. First described in the French-Canadian population of Quebec in 1978, ARSACS has since been identified in multiple patients worldwide. In this clinical case report, we describe the evaluation of an 11-years-old African-American male who presented to neuromuscular clinic for assessment of a gait abnormality. He had a history of gross motor delay since early childhood, frequent falls and a below average IQ. Chromosomal microarray revealed a 1.422 megabase loss in the 13q12.12 region, which includes the SACS gene. Next Generation Sequencing then showed a novel, predicted to be pathogenic missense mutation (c.11824dup) of this gene. His clinical presentation and neurological imaging further confirmed the diagnosis of ARSACS. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of this disease in the African-American population of the United States. This case report further highlights the growing trend of identifying genetic diseases previously restricted to single, ethnically isolated regions in many different ethnic groups worldwide

Difference, dissonance, and redemption in sport heritage: interpreting the tangled legacy of Pete Rose at two museums

Induction into a hall of fame can be the ultimate accolade for an athlete. Arguably, the most famous of all sport halls of fame is the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum (NBHF) in Cooperstown, New York. The NBHF is widely considered the primary authority concerning baseball enshrinement, although other baseball halls of fame may differ in their assessment of particular players. One such case involves Pete Rose, baseball’s all-time hits leader, who received a lifetime ban from Major League Baseball for gambling on his own games. Rose is omitted for consideration for the NBHF, however he is an inductee at the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum (RHFM) in Cincinnati, Ohio where he was a star player. Major League Baseball and the Office of the Commissioner are the authorizing agents for both halls of fame and appear to support both perspectives. This research note explores the different approaches to Pete Rose at the NBHF and the RHFM. We consider the potential for dissonant narratives to be used as a management tool by the authorizing agent in order to gauge public opinion and assuage Rose’s fans whilst keeping the debate firmly in the public eye