bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Maternal psychosocial factors related to duration and exclusivity of breastfeeding practices among rural women : the healthy moms and babies study
Authors:   , Eddy Tonya Lynn
Published: April 2021

Although many benefits of exclusive and long-term breastfeeding have been noted within research, rural populations continue to have rates that fall below the national goal for both exclusivity (25.5%) and duration (34.1%). Regardless, some women within this population are successful at breastfeeding both exclusively and for the recommended length of time. This study aimed at identifying pre-delivery psychosocial characteristics within a rural population that may be predictive of their breastfeeding exclusivity rates postpartum. A sample of 90 women in 27 rural counties completed instruments to measure self-esteem, breastfeeding self-confidence, partner/social support, depression, abuse and motivation during their third trimester of pregnancy and again around four months post-delivery. Mann-Whitney U, Fischer's exact test and Chi Square were used for analysis. Previous demographic findings associated with exclusivity were not supported within this sample, with age, income and educational level approaching but not achieving significance. Antenatal measurements of breastfeeding self-confidence and motivation were significantly associated with breastfeeding exclusivity. Women who were more confident in their ability to breastfeed and were more motivated were more likely to exclusively breastfeed through three months. The findings of this study may assist in developing future nursing interventions to improve breastfeeding outcomes, as psychosocial characteristics are potentially modifiable.
l'Ecorce grossiere, l'ame aristocrate : literary representations of Cajuns in Francophone Louisiana, nineteenth century to present
Authors:   , Gossett Scott
Published: April 2021

Cajuns have traditionally been defined as originating from French Acadian refugees who arrived in Louisiana from present-day Nova Scotia beginning in the late eighteenth century. However many of the people today who identify with the Cajun ethnicity are not descendants of those Acadian settlers. Moreover, this and other modern definitions of 'Cajun' have been solidified fairly recently in the twentieth century and have been formed through a dialogue with Anglo-American stereotypes. These stereotypes restrict the identity and ignore the major influences from a plethora of diverse cultures: French, Spanish, American, Irish, German, African, and Native American. This study provides a Francophone alternative to the English stereotypes that more accurately portrays the complexities of Cajun identity and provides an alternative portrayal with which to enter a dialogue.
Google Scholar and meta descriptions : does adding abstracts to a search engine results page aid in undergraduate document triage efficiency?
Authors:   , Lowrance Nathan John
Published: April 2021

By focusing on the point where the document triage process interacts with a search engine results page (SERP), this experiment extends our knowledge about both SERP design and document triage behavior. Prior SERP work has shown that longer meta descriptions in SERPs improve people's ability to answer information based questions, while document triage research has shown the importance of abstracts in making relevancy decisions. Using eye tracking equipment this work employed a repeated measure within factors experimental design method replacing the existing Google Scholar (GS) SERP meta descriptions with the abstracts of the corresponding retrieved articles. Undergraduate freshmen participants were asked to use two different GS SERPs, one with a control design and one with the experimental design and determine which resources are relevant to their assigned research task. The findings show that the participants changed how long they looked at the expanded meta description, while noticeably reducing how long they gazed at other parts of the page supporting other research findings. The addition of abstracts changed user behavior by reducing how often they made surrogate level document transitions, but did not change how often they sought out full-text documents, supporting the principle of least effort. The addition of abstracts did not contribute to changes in total time on task or participant's relevancy accuracy. This study's findings conflict with other work that found that longer meta descriptions corresponded with a reduction in total task time and an improvement in accuracy for informational tasks. Further research is needed to determine if this conflict was due to task differences or if the document triage task was not challenging enough.
Cardiorespiratory fitness through the early lifecourse and attempts to modulate its initial decline
Authors:   , Toedebusch Ryan
Published: April 2021

There has never been an outcome measure for human health more important than VO2peak, yet we know nothing about the molecular triggers for its decline with aging. Peak aerobic capacity (VO2peak) is a strong predictor of morbidity and mortality. Lifetime-apex VO2peak is the highest value for VO2peak during the life course and declines beginning the 3rd decade of human life. I examined the ability of chronic voluntary wheel running, or 5-weeks of AICAR administration, to delay the chronological age at which the decline of lifetime-apex VO2peak begins and potential underlying molecular mechanisms. Experiment one consisted of female rats with (RUN) and without (NO RUN) running wheels that underwent frequent VO2peak tests beginning at 10-weeks of age and continuing until 27-weeks of age. Lifetime apex-VO2peak occurred at 19 weeks of age in both groups, decreasing thereafter. On average, VO2peak measured across experiment one was [about]25% higher in RUN. Experiment two used the AMPK-agonist AICAR, beginning at 17-weeks of age to test if the chronological age for lifetime-apex VO2peak decline could be shifted to an older age. Two groups of female rats, AICAR (0.5 mg/kg daily) and vehicle (VEH, saline) were used for 5-weeks and all animals were sacrificed at 22-weeks of age. Compared to VEH group, AICAR rats showed significantly higher body weights, muscle weights, heart weights and lower % body fat. Additionally, AICAR was able to delay the initial decline by one-week, from 19- to 20-weeks of age, but was lowered to VEH levels at 22- weeks of age. Transcriptomic analysis of the lateral head of the tricep muscle from experiment one animals revealed mRNA differences in RUN vs. NO RUN, suggesting differing skeletal muscle gene regulation immediately prior to lifetime-apex VO2peak decline. Two phases of life were examined, pre-apex VO2peak (17- to 19-weeks of age) and post-apex (19- to 27-weeks of age). These data indicate that rat wheel running increases VO2peak 25% and is not sufficient to delay the chronological age of lifetime-apex VO2peak decline, whereas AICAR delayed it one week. Transcriptomic analysis of experiment one offers target molecules that play a role in: 1) the causation of the decline occurring at 19-weeks of age, and 2) potential genes and mechanisms contributing to the initiation of decline in lifetime-apex VO2peak.
Modeling and experimental study of polyurethane foaming reactions
Authors:   , Zhao Yusheng
Published: April 2021

Polyurethanes are very important polymers and are used in a wide range of applications. A theoretical model was developed to simulate polyurethane foaming reactions. In the model, multiple ordinary differential equations were solved by MATLAB program and the model was able to predict temperature, foam height and concentration profiles. This model can provide a better understanding of fundamental polyurethane chemistry and the foaming process. Further modeling and experimental studies were performed to improve accuracy and to expand capability of the simulation program. Impact of side reactions, impact of catalyst and surfactant concentrations and impact of catalysis poisoning were taken into consideration and included in the model. The revised model was able to predict bubble radius, inside bubble pressure, vapor pressure of pure isocyanate as well as more reasonable temperatures, foam height, and concentration profiles. Reaction kinetics and thermodynamics parameters used in the simulation program were verified by experimental and/or computational methods respectively. The use of simulation offers a way to control the complexity and transform materials design, just as process simulators have transformed engineering design. This perspective presents a case that simulation is ready to change the way we research, develop, and design polyurethane formulations.
University students' intercultural sensitivity emergence using a DMIS-oriented intercultural seminar with an intercultural development support website (EPSS approach)
Authors:   , Boonseng Thitinun
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] There is increasing demand among industries for graduates with intercultural competency. There is an obvious need for a training program that would support students' intercultural development. It is not likely that all university students will be able to afford to participate in study abroad programs to gain such development. Given the fact that a university's community is an environment that by nature is diverse, universities need to do more to help students benefit from these opportunities. This comparative study explored the experiences, perceptions, and changes in the intercultural sensitivity levels for individuals in a DMIS-oriented intercultural seminar delivered through Blackboard or through EPSS supports. The comparative case study approach allowed contextual analysis of the entire seminar and supports, and used qualitative data to explain the impact of the seminar and perceptions of change for the students by the completion of the seminar. The findings in this study supported this premise, since most of the student participants showed improvement in their intercultural sensitivity level after participating in the DMIS-oriented seminar. The findings provided evidence that a DMIS-oriented EPSS has the potential to assist students in learning about the developmental model, giving them a new lens to view the world and to help them benefit from the existing opportunities available in their intercultural learning landscapes (i.e., their universities' diverse environments and resources).
Trace/extension operators in rough domains and applications to partial differential equations
Authors:   , Brewster Kevin
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] Trace and extension theory lay the foundation for solving a plethora of boundary value problems. In developing this theory, one typically needs well-behaved extension operators from a specified domain to the entire Euclidean space. Historically, three extension operators have developed much of the theory in the setting of Lipschitz domains (and rougher domains); those due to A.P. Calderon, E.M. Stein, and P.W. Jones. In this dissertation, we generalize Stein's extension operator to weighted Sobolev spaces and Jones' extension operator to domains with partially vanishing traces. We then develop a rich trace/extension theory as a tool in solving a Poisson boundary value problem with Dirichlet boundary condition where the differential operator in question is of second order in divergence form with bounded coefficients satisfying the Legendre-Hadamard ellipticity condition.
Three essays on personnel economics in public education
Authors:   , Li Jiaxi
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] This dissertation consists of three chapters on personnel economics in public education. The first chapter creates a simulation framework to examine the efficiency implications of using proportional evaluation systems. We find that proportionality can be imposed with very limited or no efficiency costs compared to global systems. Our results suggest that given other benefits offered by proportional policy, it could be regarded as a viable alternative to the global policy. The second chapter uses regression discontinuity design to examine impacts of the performance ratings under a new and rigorous evaluation system in Tennessee on teacher job satisfaction. The results indicate that the rigorous evaluation system can cause differential job satisfaction between more and less effective teachers. The third chapter uses a reduced-form regression discontinuity approach to isolate and identify the "intention to treat" effect of assigning differentiated evaluation ratings on teachers' professional development choices. I find that the assignment of a higher performance rating alone would not affect how teachers would behave in professional development.
Impact of religious and spiritual beliefs on neuroendocrine function and health outcomes in breast cancer survivors
Authors:   , Hulett Jennifer M.
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] Background: Breast cancer survivors rely on religious and spiritual beliefs to cope with breast cancer survivorship. Previous data have shown that religious and spiritual beliefs were associated with health outcomes. However, a gap in the literature has been a lack of objective evidence linking psychosocial variables with physiological outcomes. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine relationships between and among religious and spiritual variables, subjective health outcomes, and neuroendocrine-mediated cortisol activity in breast cancer survivors. Design: This was an exploratory, feasibility, and cross-sectional studyMethod: Subjective measures were: religious/spiritual variables (Brief Multi-dimensional Measures of Religiousness/Spirituality), subjective health (SF-36v2 Health Outcomes), and personality traits (NEO-FFI-3 Personality Inventory). Objective measures included salivary cortisol, blood pressure, pulse, respirations, and body mass index. The sample consisted of female breast cancer survivors (n=41). Results: Positive spiritual beliefs and forgiveness were related to better mental health. Positive congregational support was related to better physical and mental health. Positive spiritual experiences were associated with healthier cortisol activity patterns. Conscientiousness was associated with less healthy cortisol patterns. Subjective health perceptions were not associated with cortisol activity. Conclusion: Data supported a psychoneuroimmunological model of health in which spiritual variables were related to subjective health outcomes. Positive spiritual beliefs and conscientiousness were associated with neuroendocrine-mediated cortisol activity; although, more empirical support is required.
Delineating the functional roles of dynamin related proteins in plant innate immunity
Authors:   , Smith John M.
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] Vesicular trafficking mediates the movement of cargo molecules from donor to target organelles and is emerging as a critical means by which plants modulate immune responses to microbial pathogens. However, relatively few vesicular trafficking proteins have been implicated as regulatory components of plant immune responses. Here, a candidate-based approach was utilized to identify Arabidopsis thaliana Dynamin-Related Protein 2B (DRP2B), as a novel vesicular trafficking protein functioning in flg22-signaling and innate immunity against Pseudomonas syringae. Loss of DRP2B differently affects three distinct branches of the flg22-signaling network. My analysis was extended to investigate other DRP family members which have also been previously implicated in endocytosis. Interestingly, loss of another DRP family member results in an identical separation of immune signaling responses as described for drp2b mutant plants, providing evidence that these two DRPs may operate within a common flg22-induced signaling pathway. In addition to identifying novel components that affect flg22-induced signaling responses, work in this dissertation sought to understand the potential role(s) of flg22-induced endocytosis of FLS2 in the initiation and attenuation of flg22-induced signaling responses. To this end, I made significant contributions showing that vesicular trafficking of FLS2 is important for the desensitization of cells to flg22 via ligand-induced endocytic degradation of FLS2 and that resensitization of cells to flg22 by secretion of newly-synthesized FLS2 prepares cells for subsequent rounds of flg22-perception. Altogether, work in this dissertation provides some of the first evidence of a link between flg22-induced endocytosis of FLS2 and early flg22-signaling responses.
The lived experience of teaching literacy to English language learners among experienced, mainstream, elementary teachers using a coculturation perspective
Authors:   , Stegall Jennifer
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] Given the growing number of English Language Learners (ELL) in elementary schools and their potential struggles with literacy development, this qualitative phenomenology used a coculturation perspective to investigate the lived experience of teaching literacy to ELLs in mainstream elementary classrooms. In-depth interviews were conducted to learn about teaching literacy to ELLs among experienced, mainstream elementary teachers in the Midwest and South. Three shared experiences emerged: a) teachers negotiated a range of personal emotions, b) teachers drew on relationships as resources, and c) teachers perceptions of literacy for ELLs evolved. Findings indicated that participants realized they will probably have ELLs in their classrooms and teaching ELLs can be challenging yet satisfying. As the ELL population continues to grow, teachers will need to rely on others to help ELLs overcome their struggles with literacy development. Teaching literacy to ELLs is a process of discovery and teachers need to be open for potential changes in perceptions that will help them provide more effective literacy instruction. This study revealed that educators need to develop expertise throughout their careers.
Study of dielectrophoresis effect of dipolar molecules in electric field of nanopore and development of medical diagnostic nanopore sensor
Authors:   , Tian Kai
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] The nanopore sensor can detect cancer-derived nucleic acid biomarkers such as microRNAs (miRNAs), providing a noninvasive tool potentially useful in medical diagnostics. However, the nanopore-based detection of these biomarkers remains confounded by the presence of numerous other nucleic acid species found in biofluid extracts. Their nonspecific interactions with the nanopore inevitably contaminate the target signals, reducing the detection accuracy. Here we report a novel method that utilizes a polycationic peptide-PNA probe as the carrier for selective nucleic acid detection in the nucleic acids mixture. The cationic probe hybridized with DNA or RNA forms a dipole complex, which can be captured by the pore using a voltage polarity that is opposite the polarity used to capture negatively charged nucleic acids. As a result, non-target species are driven away from the pore opening, and the target sequences can be detected accurately without interference. In addition, we demonstrate that the PNA probe enables to accurately discriminate single-nucleotide difference. Moreover, molecule dynamic simulation is applied to expose the mechanism. Combined with experimental and calculating data, we construct a model to demonstrate that it is universal for all kinds of nucleic acid targets. In sum, this highly sensitive and selective nano-dielectrophoresis approach can be applied to the detection of clinically relevant nucleic acid fragments in complex samples and fulfills the diagnostic of diseases in early stage.
Structural and functional studies of proline catabolic enzymes and human aldehyde dehydrogenases
Authors:   , Luo Min
Published: April 2021

Oxidation of amino acids, like proline catabolism, is a central part of energy metabolism. Proline is oxidized to glutamate by two enzymes: proline dehydrogenase (PRODH) and 1-pyrroline-5-carboxylate dehydrogenase (P5CDH). PRODH catalyzes the first reaction of proline to 1-pyrroline-5-carboxylate (P5C). P5C undergoes a non-enzymatic hydrolysis to glutamate semialdehyde (GSA), which is oxidized to glutamate by a NAD+- dependent enzyme P5CDH. PRODH and P5CDH are mono-functional enzymes in eukaryotes and Gram-positive bacteria; while in Gram-negative bacteria, the two enzymes are fused into one protein as two domains, known as proline utilization A (PutA). This dissertation work involved structural and functional studies of PRODH, P5CDH, PutA, and human aldehyde dehydrogenases (ALDHs). The results illuminated the substrate recognition for mono-functional PRODH and hot spot oligomerization mechanism for mono-functional P5CDH, also, demonstrated that diethylaminobenzaldehyde (DEAB) is a mechanism based inactivator for aldehyde dehydrogenase 7A1. Furthermore, the C-terminal domain found in PutAs, the only domain without any structural and functional information has been structurally and biochemically characterized.
Cover (a play about trafficking) the power of creating performative auto/ethnographies in a theatre community
Authors:   , Powell Joy Ann
Published: April 2021

The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist. This idea that the devil (or depravity) is sly enough to make us believe it doesn't exist comes rushing forward up to this moment. I connect this idea to the epidemic of domestic trafficking and sexual exploitation of minors and the misconception that it is not happening in the United States. In this dissertation through an auto/ethnography lens of the work of The Covering House (TCH), I explore the issue of domestic trafficking in St. Louis, Missouri. This play is based upon the narratives gathered from TCH staff and volunteers including my own experiences. I also explore the unique framework of creating a theatre community in the middle of a performed auto/ethnography. I chronicle the community created with the actors and the production team, as well as the audience and the staff and clients at TCH. Identity is who we are and who we are becoming. Performance is calling upon that identity in a public setting to tell a story through our bodies, minds and voices to an audience.
Strategies for tailored messages : interaction of personal value orientation and freedom threat for chronic diseases management and behavior changes
Authors:   , Han Kyung Jung
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] The purpose of the overall study was to explore more effective ways of creating tailored health messages for technology-based interventions in order to help self-management of chronic diseases. The overall study is twofold: Study 1 -- systematic review and Study 2 -- experimental study. Conducting Study 1 -- review study -- has shed light on the current status of research on technology-based interventions for managing chronic diseases. Specifically, the study considered methodological quality and features of interventions as indices in order to improve the effectiveness of the technology-based interventions for chronic diseases. Accordingly, given personal value orientation and freedom threat, Study 2 investigated these as potential elements to be included in tailored health messages and leading to more or less persuasive effects for self-management. It examined whether invoking an individualâ€™s personal value orientation between two extreme value orientations--self-enhancement and self-transcendence--and threatening an individualâ€™s freedom in health news messages on diabetes can cause psychological reactance and affect compliance with suggested health behaviors. The details of each study will be explained.
Bayesian hierarchical models for estimating nest survival
Authors:   , Yang Yiqun
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] Nest survival rate is a critical value in avian study to evaluate the landbirds populations. The widely used likelihood-based logistic regression model was evaluated in the first part of the dissertation. In this part, we investigated the importance of nest age in estimating survival rates and measured the model selection accuracy based on AIC results. Next we extended Bayesian Hierarchical Model to include different nest period lengths which estimated the overall survival rates and survival curves with combined nest period lengths. For unknown nest fate, the nest fate effect and the nest-specific covariates were included in the missing probability estimation. We also compared the results from incomplete data with the results from complete data analysis. The estimated overall survival rates and survival curves all supported the model performance. Finally, we included the spatial effect into the age-specific outcome rates estimation. The point-level nest observations explained the nest-specific spatial effect within each unit; while the grid-level data explained the spatial effect between different units. In each part, a simulation study was conducted to evaluate the performance of the model and an application was also provided. All the programs were written in FORTRAN and a R package (function) was created to make it more user friendly.
Bayesian smoothing spline models and their application in estimating yield curves
Authors:   , Tong Xiaojun
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] The term structure of interest rates, also called the yield curve, is the series of interest rates ordered by term to maturity at a given time. The smoothing spline as a nonparametric regression method has been used widely for fitting a smooth curve due to its flexibility and smoothing properties. In this dissertation, a class of Bayesian smoothing spline models is developed for the yield curve estimation under different scenarios. These include the Bayesian smoothing spline model for estimating the Treasury yield curves, the Bayesian multivariate smoothing spline model for estimating multiple yield curves jointly, the Bayesian adaptive smoothing spline model for dealing with the yield data in which the smoothness varies significantly, the Bayesian smoothing spline model for extracting the zero-coupon yield curve from coupon bond prices, and the Bayesian thin-plate splines for modeling the yield curves on both the calendar time and the maturity. In addition, the Bayesian model selection in the smoothing spline models is developed to test the nonlinearity of the yield curves.
It takes a village: Twentieth Century black women's fiction and the spiritual apprenticeship narrative
Authors:   , Bailey Constance
Published: April 2021

This dissertation looks at nine works by contemporary black women writers and argues that the relationships between the major characters in the text reflect and emphasize the importance of mentoring bonds in black communities. More importantly, the project argues that by critically exploring this relationship we can come come to understand more about coming of narratives written by black women writers. These works suggest that there is a marked difference in the way that black people, black women in particular, mature, become successfully integrated into society, and deal with personal and communal crises.
Does CEO tenure influence corporate bond rating properties?
Authors:   , Zhang Xia
Published: April 2021

This study examines whether and how corporate bond rating quality varies with CEO tenure. Due to the expansive roles of credit ratings in capital market, managers have incentives to maintain or improve their ratings. Accumulated firm experience makes longer-tenured CEOs better at strategic communication with rating agencies and thereby more able to achieve the desired rating outcomes, leading to lower rating quality. Consistent with this prediction, I find that ratings are less accurate, less timely, and more volatile for issuers with longer-tenured CEOs. All these results hold after controlling for the impact of CEO tenure through public information sharing, suggesting that longer-tenured CEOs manage credit ratings through private information sharing with rating agencies. Moreover, investors do not understand such rating management by longer-tenured CEOs.
Quasilinear elliptic equations with sub-natural growth and nonlinar potentials
Authors:   , Cao Dat Tien
Published: April 2021

Necessary and sufficient conditions for the existence of finite energy and weak solutions are given. Sharp global pointwise estimates of solutions are obtained as well. We also discuss the uniqueness and regularity properties of solutions. As a consequence, characterization of solvability of the equations with singular natural growth in the gradient terms is deduced. Our main tools are Wolff potential estimates, dyadic models, and related integral inequalities. Special nonlinear potentials of Wolff type ssociated with "sublinear" problems are constructed to obtain sharp bounds of solutions. We also treat equations with the fractional Laplacians. Our approach is applicable to more general quasilinear A-Laplace operators as well as the fully nonlinear k-Hessian operators.
Synthesis, characterization and photophysical studies of cyclometalated Au(III) complexes
Authors:   , Nilakantan Lakshmi
Published: April 2021

We report here a series of room temperature emissive biphenyl cyclometalated gold (III) diethyl dithiocarbamate complexes (DEDT) having H, CF3, OMe and tBu substitutions on the biphenyl moiety. Synthesis of these complexes was accomplished by a single step reaction of the appropriate dilithiobiphenyl reagent with Au(DEDT)Cl2. The Au(DEDT)Cl2 complex played an important role in the success of our reaction, where the chelating sulfur ligand stabilizes the Au(III) center and keeps it intact without reducing to Au(I) or colloidal gold during the course of its reaction with the lithium compound. In comparison with other literature reported procedures for analogous Au(III) complexes, this methodology gave better yields with lesser number of reaction steps as well as without using toxic chemicals such as sodium cyanide or tin compounds. All of these complexes exhibit phosphorescence at room temperature as well as in low temperature glasses. While substitution on the biphenyl moiety by electron donating OMe and tBu groups red shifted the emission band when compared with hydrogen counterparts, the electron withdrawing CF3 groups made no difference. The emission from these complexes is mainly governed by the metal perturbed 3??* transitions of biphenyl and this assignment is well supported by the observed photo physical properties such as vibronic structured emission, lifetime in microseconds, large stokes shift, solvent independent emission spectrum as well as the oxygen quenching of the emission spectrum. Further DFT studies on these complexes also showed that the transition from LUMO+2 to HOMO. (3pi-pi*) is responsible for the emission. This is in contrast with lowest energy absorption which is mainly from HOMO-L+1 (LLCT). This is rationalized by the existence of a relaxed 3pi-pi* (-3.31 eV) state in lower energy when compared with the relaxed 3LLCT state (-1.61 eV) as well as the large energy difference between singlet and triplet pi-pi* states. We also hereby report the synthesis of a bis(diethyldithiocarbamate(DEDT) -S,S)-(naphthyl-1,8) digold(II) complex with a formal Au-Au bond. Our synthetic strategy involved reductive coupling via lithiation of dibromonaphthalene precursor followed by reaction with Au(DEDT)Cl2. This digold complex is unique when compared with known digold(II) complexes, which are traditionally synthesized by oxidative addition of halogen to digold(I) complexes. The digold complex has been characterized by NMR, XRD, UV-Vis and elemental analysis. DFT reasoned the UV-Vis absorption of complex 3 at 379 nm to the transition from sigmaAu-Au) orbital into sigma*(Au-Au) orbital with some contributions from the dithiocarbamate ligand (LMCT). However this complex shows no emission at 298 or 77 K. The lack of emission could possibly be due to low-lying non-emissive d-d states.
Application of systems factorial technology and hierarchical Bayesian modeling to chunking in working memory
Authors:   , Thiele Jonathan
Published: April 2021

Although there is substantial evidence supporting the existence of chunking in Working Memory, much of it is dependent on a small range of experimental methods, many of which rely on accuracy measures. Consequently, I feel there is a need to develop a new method for studying chunking. In this paper, I propose one such method, adapted from a perceptual research method known as Systems Factorial Technology, to determine whether a given pair of features is chunked or maintained as separate objects. In addition, I test this method on two pairs of stimuli through four experiments, testing whether the feature are processed together or separately in both perception and memory. The current research finds no evidence for chunking in either feature pair considered.
Ambulatory assessment of physiological arousal, emotion, and alcohol use
Authors:   , Tomko Rachel L.
Published: April 2021

Research examining whether negative affect leads to drinking has produced mixed results (Greeley and Oei, 1999; Sher and Grekin, 2007). The current project enlisted participants (n=43) oversampled for affective instability, arguably making them at higher risk for negative affect-driven alcohol consumption. The goals of this study were to 1) validate an ambulatory device for measuring electrodermal activity (EDA) and to 2) examine the relations between emotion, EDA, and alcohol use in real-time. Multiple self-reports of emotion, alcohol use, and behavior were obtained from participants each day over the course of one week using electronic diaries. EDA was assessed continuously during waking hours. The results suggested that ambulatory measurement of EDA is feasible, and agreement between ambulatory measures and traditional laboratory measures was moderate to high for number of skin conductance responses per minute. Skin conductance level was less consistent across measures. With regard to ambulatory findings, high negative affect and high arousal states during the day were generally related to decreased likelihood of same-day drinking and decreased estimated blood alcohol concentration, while positive affect was related to increased likelihood of drinking. Hostility and number of skin conductance responses interacted, such that low hostility and low arousal was related to greater amounts of alcohol consumed. In sum, negative affect and arousal were related to alcohol use in real-time, but effects were small and both were generally protective against alcohol consumption at the day-level. This study helps to clarify the role of arousal in affect-related drinking, while also adding to accumulating evidence that suggests negative affect-related drinking may not be an immediate coping response. Positive-affect drinking may be most relevant in early stages of alcohol use, even in an emotionally dysregulated sample.
Remaking lives and community in the gooseless goose capital of the world
Authors:   , Leap Braden Thomas
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] Climate change is disrupting and will continue to disrupt peoples' lives and communities all over the world. Nevertheless, a vast majority of research has focused on the environmental and/oreconomic consequences of the phenomena, while relatively little attention has been granted to how people manage to refashion their identities, cultures, and communities. This is a dramatic oversight precisely because selves and ways of life will have to be refashioned in response to environmental transformations associated with climate change if communities are to be sustained. Accordingly, in this dissertation I utilize data from over a year and a half of ethnographic fieldwork in Sumner, Missouri to analyze how people had been and were remaking their identities, culture, and community in response to a shift in trans-national goose migration patterns that was facilitated, at least in part, by climate change. I make the following three arguments. First, lives and communities will be remade through coconstitutive interactions between multiple (non)human things, beings, and institutions across scales of space and time. Second, absences and uncertainties will be crucially important to how people reconstruct their lives and communities. Third, inequalities inform and are remade through adaptations to climate change. Combined, I argue the complexities of communities can provide vital resources for facilitating adaptations, but that these complexities can and do shape adaptations in ways that can facilitate the reproduction, or even intensification, of inequalities.
African American males navigating their way to college : a socio-ecological resiliency model
Authors:   , Danforth Laura E.
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] The majority of African American college students are female, with males representing five percent of the total four-year college population (U.S. Census, 2013). Despite the evolution of race relations in the United States, African American males experience increased residential and school segregation, reduced access to qualified teachers and school staff, discipline disparities due to zero-tolerance policies, and increased likelihood of experiencing school to prison pipeline, all of which reduce their likelihood of enrollment in college (American Psychological Association Task Force, 2008; Aud, Fox, and Kewel-Ramani, 2010; Orfield, Kucsera, and Siegal-Hawley, 2012). In order to shift from deficit to strengths-based perspectives on achievement, a qualitative grounded theory investigation was utilized to uncover essential resources in participants' (N=22) social ecologies that increased the likelihood of college enrollment. As a result, insight was provided into the particular socio-ecological influences and elements that contributed to "pre-college socialization and readiness," (Harper, 2010, pg. 5) that eventually led to enrollment at a four-year college. It was found that family was the most powerful resource in participants' environments, as the initial establishment of the non-negotiable family expectation that they would attend college greatly influenced their selection in peer groups, involvement in positive community programs, as well as whether or not they were able to take advantage of other socio-ecological resources in their environment, such as positive teacher relationships and involvement in school programs.
Carnivore ecology and conservation : implications for tiger conservation and management in Nepal
Authors:   , Kafley Hemanta
Published: April 2021

In human-dominated landscapes, conservation and management of large carnivores has been a formidable challenge due to habitat fragmentation, degradation and loss, wildlife persecution, and poaching. Consequently, wide-ranging species like tigers are now relegated to small protected areas. I evaluated factors influencing occupancy of tiger at a fine spatial-scale, developed a novel model to estimate prey abundance, assessed intraguild interaction between tigers and leopards in response to prey and disturbance factors, and evaluated sustainable financing mechanisms for tiger conservation programs. The success of carnivore conservation relies on better understanding their habitat use and prey availability, the community structure of competing species, and the financial ability to sustain monitoring and conservation programs. I collected field data through camera trap survey in Chitwan National Park and found that tiger occurrence was influenced by fine-scale habitat factors including prey availability. I concluded that in small protected areas wide-ranging carnivores may persist at high population densities by intensively focusing their activity on small portions of their home ranges. Furthermore, prey abundance, key to carnivore persistence, can be reliably estimated from camera trapping data using binomial mixture models. Further, prey abundances in conjunction with human and livestock presence in the park modulate intraguild interactions between tigers and leopards. Collectively, these findings should provide useful information for biologists, conservationists, and managers on how to successfully conserve and manage large carnivores.
The relation between organizational citizenship behavior and fashion retail businesses' sustainability performance : investigating internal and external antecedents
Authors:   , Lee Stacy H.
Published: April 2021

In the U.S., the retail sector is the largest employment sector, and the third largest category of employers in this category is apparel and accessories retail stores. Retail jobs require working in stores while standing for long periods, and working hours are often irregular, including holidays and weekends. This has resulted in a gradual turnover rate. The fashion retail industry's working environment and high rate of employee turnover may lead to short- and long-term negative organizational performance (Park and Shaw, 2013). However, little is known about fashion retail employees' behaviors and attitudes toward fashion business' organizational sustainability performance. Based on social exchange theory and on social and human capital theory (Leana and Van Buren, 1999; Shaw et al., 2005), this research was designed to investigate the internal and external antecedents of U.S. fashion retail employees' organizational citizenship behavior and its consequences on the triple bottom line of organizational sustainability performance. With regard to the method used in this study, Qualtrics collected a total of 309 responses, and a total of 278 responses being employed in the development of the measurement model and structural model for the proposed research questions. Ethical climate positively influenced organizational citizenship behavior, while job satisfaction negatively influenced turnover intention. Further, turnover intention showed negative effects on all three dimensions of organizational sustainability performance. Likewise, the three added paths for the relation between organizational citizenship behavior and each of the financial, social, and environmental dimensions of organizational sustainability performance were found to have positive effects. Through a social exchange between employees and organizations, when an organization provides an ethical working environment, employees may have lower turnover intention or may develop a higher level of organizational citizenship behavior. This has theoretical implications, suggesting that the two theories are helpful when explaining the role of employees' organizational citizenship behavior in organizations' overall sustainability performance. This implies that employees' positive attitudes toward their jobs are a central component of improving organizational sustainability performance. One effective way to increase job satisfaction is to listen thoughtfully to employees' ideas for job improvement, or their problems, concerns, frustrations, and conflicts.
Activation and evasion of innate immune signaling pathways by Yersinia pestis
Authors:   , Dhariwala Miqdad Onali
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] Yersinia pestis is a bacterial pathogen that causes the disease plague in mammals. The disease is rapidly lethal and infected individuals can succumb to the disease in as less as three days post-infection. This suggests that the immune system completely fails at restricting bacterial growth and eliminating the bacteria from the body. We therefore used Y. pestis to study its interactions with the mammalian immune system to gain a deeper understanding of the pathogens strategy to overcome immune responses. We identified that Y. pestis activates Toll-like receptor 7 (TLR7), traditionally considered a mammalian sensor of virus infections. We further demonstrate that this bacterium activates TLR7 to promote mammalian immune cells to produce the type I interferon (IFN), interferon beta, a cytokine released by cells of the immune system in response to infection. In this work we demonstrate that TLR7 and type I IFN are vital for Y. pestis to cause plague. Moreover, we show that this bacterium triggers a previously unknown immune signaling pathway in mammalian immune cells. Since we showed that TLR7 and type I IFN are required for this pathogen to cause plague we can potentially use this information to better design therapeutic strategies that potentiate immune responses. Such strategies can help us move away from the extensive use of antibiotics and circumvent the emerging problem of antibiotic resistance.
Alcohol sensitivity and the Incentive Sensitization Theory of Addiction
Authors:   , Fleming Kimberly Ann
Published: April 2021

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] The Incentive Sensitization Theory of Addiction (ISTA; Robinson and Berridge, 1993) posits that certain individuals are at-risk for developing addictive patterns of behavior by virtue of hypersensitivity to the incentive-motivational properties of drugs that, over repeated administrations, translates to a bias toward drug-related cues, such that these cues begin to take on the incentive-motivational properties of the drug itself. ISTA has been developed and validated in a preclinical rodent model and the theory is difficult to test experimentally in humans. The purpose of the current study was to develop a paradigm to investigate the neural mechanisms by which low sensitivity to the acute effects of alcohol may confer risk for AUD in the context of ISTA. One hundred-six participants identified as high (HS) or low (LS) in alcohol sensitivity on the basis of a self-report questionnaire completed a novel incentive salience learning task (ISLT) where unconditioned stimuli (US; alcoholic beverage odors [AO], sweet odors [SwO], nonconsummable control odors [NcO]) were consistently predicted by conditioned stimuli (CS; colored squares) while EEG was recorded. Participants also completed an approach-avoidance task where CS from the ISLT task served as target stimuli. While neither group showed neural processing biases toward AO, LS (but not HS) individuals showed neural processing biases toward the AO-paired CS as evidenced by larger P3 and SPN toward the AO-CS as CS-US associations were learned. Further, LS (but not HS) individuals experienced increases in craving (i.e., "wanting") for alcohol, but the groups did not differ in pleasantness ratings (i.e., "liking") of AO over the course of the ISLT task. Taken together, these data provide evidence that LS individuals show increases in alcohol "wanting" but not "liking" over the course of repeated alcohol odor presentations and that as CS-US associations are learned, LS individuals show neural indices of incentive salience attribution to the AO-paired CS, providing evidence that LS individuals are more susceptible to the incentive sensitization processes posited by ISTA to be associated with addiction risk. These findings represent the strongest evidence to date of the translation of ISTA to a human model.