Molecular and Morphological Variation among Populations of \u3ci\u3ePediomelum tenuiflorum\u3c/i\u3e (Pursh) A.N. Egan (Fabaceae) in Nebraska, USA

Individuals of Pediomelum tenuiflorum, “wild alfalfa”, from disjunct populations in Nebraska vary extensively in their overall gestalt. Those in the western and central part of the state have a very slender growth habit, with thin stems and few, small flowers; whereas, those in the southeast have a very robust growth habit with heavy-looking stems and many tightly clustered flowers. For nearly 200 years, taxonomists have alternated between splitting P. tenuiflorum into two species, with the many-flowered morphotype named P. floribundum, and lumping all the morphological variants into one species as they are now. In this study, we investigated morphological and molecular characters that could be used to clarify taxonomic classifications of these morphotypes. We measured 10 morphological characters on 51 specimens and sequenced nearly 300,000 nucleotide characters on the Illumina platform from three cellular genomes in seven samples of Pediomelum plus an outgroup taxon. Results revealed six significantly different morphological characters but ambiguous evolutionary histories of the plastid and mitochondrial genomes in P. tenuiflorum. Our complete plastid genomes and genes and noncoding regions of the mitochondrial genome may be used as a foundation for studying the evolutionary histories of these genomes. Additionally, we identified seven highly variable genomic regions in the chloroplast genome upon which a molecular phylogenetic investigation on an expanded set of samples from across the species’ geographic distribution can be conducted to further define the taxonomic placements of P. tenuiflorum and P. floribundum

What\u27s in a Name? Being a League of Women Voters in 2022

This essay explores the ways in which the League of Women Voters in Maine lives up to its mission of making democracy work

Study of attachment methods for advanced spacecraft thermal-control materials Final report

Attachment methods for thermal control composite system comprised of optical solar reflectors and multilayer insulation to minimize heating from incident solar energ

Utilizing Speech Language Pathology Praxis to Equip Communications Centers in Supporting Students with Communications Disorders: A Research Study in Progress

College students have many concerns when first arriving at school. Who will be my roommate? How will I make friends? Are my classes going to be harder than they were in high school? For persons who stutter, these questions are often intensified. Persons who stutter may also have to take on a new role of self-advocacy now that they are independent from their family or friends they had in high school. For these students, social situations, presentations, and classroom participation can seem increasingly challenging, especially without the needed support in place. How can communications centers play a role in supporting these students and help them achieve success at their university?

Quantum Criticality in Strongly Correlated Electron Systems

The study of the Hubbard model in three dimensions contains a variety of phases dependent upon the chosen parameters. This thesis shows that there is the indication of a zero temperature phase transition at a finite doping. The Hubbard model has been used to identify a similar quantum critical point in two dimensions. The presented results continue these investigations. The system demonstrates a strange metal phase at finite temperature which cannot be described in term of the conventional Fermi liquid. While there have been extensive studies over the past three decades for such materials in two dimensions, there are few numerical studies in three dimensions. This study strives to identify the existence of the strange metal beyond two dimensions. In this work we present numerical results based on the dynamical cluster approximation to demonstrate the existence of a strange metal phase in three dimensions

The Effect of Patient Behavior and Race/Ethnicity On the Titration of Opioid Analgesia

The undertreatment of pain following surgery is an international problem that the majority of postoperative patients experience. Despite immense technological advances in pain management, the literature remains replete with examples of patients who experience postoperative oligoanalgesia. Because registered nurses play a vital role in the management of patient pain, their practices must be studied. This study examines the correlation between patient race/ethnicity and the titration of opioids in the postoperative setting. The study also explores the knowledge and attitudes that registered nurses possess regarding opioid administration. A convenience sample of 21 perioperative registered nurses was obtained from a hospital in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. Participants completed a modified version of the Knowledge and Attitudes Survey Regarding Pain. The results identified barriers to quality pain management, especially knowledge deficits regarding the pharmacological control of pain. It was discovered that neither patient behavior nor patient race/ethnicity affected the nurse assessment or the titration of opioids. All patients experienced the underadministration of opioids regardless of their behavior or race/ethnicity. Furthermore, none of the participants received a passing score on the survey, which implies widespread misconceptions regarding pain management among the participants. The results of this study support the universal phenomenon of inadequate knowledge regarding postoperative pain management. Educational services regarding opioid administration potentially could improve nurses’ theoretical knowledge base and subsequently their practices in the clinical setting

Clones, Corporations, and Community: Cyborg Bodies Onstage

For my honors project, I selected, wrote, directed, and produced an adaptation of a science fiction novella for the stage. I chose Nino Cipri\u27s Defekt as the source material for my adaptation because I wanted to adapt a text where the novum, or science fiction novelty, is located in the bodies of the actors. During the written adaptation process, I worked from my memory of the novella, highlighting and expanding on the themes of queer found family, empathy, and anti-capitalism that were already present in the text. I repeatedly attempted to contact the author, their agent, and the publisher to secure the rights to adapt the novella, but I did not receive a reply from any of the copyright holders. After I adapted the novella into a script, I conducted a staged reading. Following that reading and further revisions of the script, I began rehearsals for the full production. During the rehearsal process, I guided the actors to create a shared vocabulary of movement to communicate that they were portraying clones, the embodied novum I focused on in my adaptation. In addition to leading rehearsals, I also coordinated the logistics to produce the play, including working with two designers, creating rehearsal schedules, and working with the tech staff in the Theater Department. The final performance examined the boundaries between human and non-human bodies, inviting audiences to think about how capitalism and empathy determine how we interact with marginalized bodies. This packet contains the program and program notes from the production

Management Strategies of New Invasive Insect Pests of Landscape Plants in Hawai‘i.

M.S. Thesis. University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa 2018

HIST 461: Absent From the Bar: Absinthe’s History, Absinthism, and Anti-Absinthe Movements in the United States 1840-2007

This paper seeks to explore the history of absinthe in the United States, as well as anti-absinthe movements and the invented illness of absinthism. The primary focus of the project is from the beginnings of absinthe’s popularity in the United States (in the 1840s) to its banning in 1912 to its relegalization (in a form) in 2007. Absinthe in the United States was treated differently and actively singled out as worse than other forms of high-proof alcohol, with campaigns against absinthe specifically, absinthe bans before Prohibition, and relegalization well after Prohibition