cometadata/datacite-titles-descriptions-related-identifiers huggingface dataset:
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c127-656521
title: Neurophysiological markers of hope and hopefulness and their behavioral consequences for risky decision-making

description: This research distinguishes between two concepts—hope and hopefulness—that researchers have previously used interchangeably. A behavioral experiment paired with functional neuroimaging demonstrates that these two concepts have both different behavioral effects and different neurophysiological effects in the context of risky decision-making. While hope leads to risk-averse behavior, hopefulness leads to risk- seeking behavior. The present investigation also highlights the neurophysiological processes underlying these effects and shows that whereas hope is associated with activation in the insula, the prefrontal cortex, and anterior cingulate, hopefulness is associated with activation in the nucleus accumbens, globus pallidus, and caudate. This research makes original contributions to the stream of investigations studying the effects of positive emotion on risky decision-making and presents novel insights into the neurophysiological correlates of discrete positive emotions.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c127-662112
title: Re-imagining community from the ruins: explorations of the intersections of the theatre of the oppressed joker, community organizer, and participatory action researcher

description: Although the ethics of Theatre of the Oppressed are grounded in popular education and social transformation, their practice in the United States has become greatly de-politicized and isolated within the Academy.  Additionally, community based-organizations often focus on single-issue, immediate needs through the provision of direct services, without creative explorations for long-term solutions.  During my nine month collaboration with the Youth Justice Coalition in Los Angeles, we sought to rebuild the connections between art-making and social activism through the use of liberation arts, specifically Theatre of the Oppressed, in order to build community capacity to investigate, understand, and respond to root causes of oppression. ❧ Our collaboration focused on the FREE LA High School, a continuation school for formerly incarcerated youth, run by the Youth Justice Coalition.  Our relationship began with three months of participant observation at the site, followed by the co-creation and facilitation of a four-month Introduction to Theatre of the Oppressed course to be piloted at FREE LA. ❧ This paper focuses on the intersections between the Theatre of the Oppressed Joker, the Participatory Action Researcher, and the Community Organizer by analyzing the process of this collaboration.  I suggest that these connections encourage a re-examination of power dynamics in Theatre of the Oppressed practices, the development of a more nuanced understanding of trauma and its effects on community formation in the United States, and a commitment to peace building and conflict resolution through long-term collaborations. ❧ Such an approach allows us to develop the Theatre of the Oppressed Joker from the ruins of the social and political climate facing marginalized populations around the world, in order to re-politicize our work in the field of transformational arts, while supporting communities in accessing their creative capacities for art-making and celebration in the struggle for liberation.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c127-666202
title: Dental papilla analysis: a multifactorial viewpoint

description: Full papillae serve both esthetic and functional roles.  Black triangles have perplexed clinicians by interrupting the harmony of the smile.  Several studies in the past have attempted to understand the appearance of black triangles.  Bone to contact distance is the most discussed factor involved in black triangle appearance, but there seems to be countless others.  Newer research has focused on systemic as well as local anatomical factors such as age, interdental width, and tissue thickness.  The aim of this study was to evaluate papilla fullness with regards to bone to contact distance, interdental width, periodontal biotype, tooth type, and age. ❧ 333 papillae from 50 patients of the dental hygiene department of the Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry of the University of Southern California were examined.  The age of each patient was recorded.  After adequate anesthesia, each sextant was examined for papilla fullness.  Periodontal sounding was used to measure both the bone to contact distance and the bone to papilla distance.  The interdental space was measured at the base of the papilla with a periodontal probe from the transitional line angles of the adjacent teeth.  Using transgingival probing, a diagnosis of thick or thin periodontal biotype was assessed. ❧ The age range of our population was between 14 to 77 years of age (mean = 49 years).  229 of the 333 papilla examined were full (68.8%).   Premolars are the most common teeth with full papillae, followed by molars, maxillary incisors, and finally mandibular incisors.  Periodontal biotype had no effect on black triangle appearance while increased bone to contact distance had a positive effect on black triangle appearance (p=.000).  This relationship was also true when controlled for interdental width and age.  Increased age had a statistically significant role in black triangle appearance (p=.001), and this relationship was true when controlled for bone to contact distance (p=000).  Interdental width was not significant in black triangle appearance (p=.557), unless bone to contact distance was controlled (p
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c40-127134
title: Issues of collaboration between social workers and lawyers
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c40-142348
title: Chicano mental health in an urban community: A case study of an East Los Angeles mental health agency
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c40-301566
title: Classroom aquatic

description: In the Fall of 2013, I organized a group of students to develop a game submission for the Oculus VR Game Jam. After a successful Kickstarter, a complete redesign of the scope, input from several conventions, and more than a year’s worth of hard work, we are close to releasing the full version of that submission as our company’s first product. The decisions that helped us get to this point—from design and quality, to financing and development, were based on the understanding that we were creating a quality product for gamers to purchase. Our player-focused approach to game development both improved the quality of the game and made it easier for us to progress its development.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c40-322126
title: Microbe-mineral interactions monitored in situ with osmotically-powered systems in marine environments

description: A major impetus and challenge in microbial ecology is the monitoring of temporally coupled environmental forcing factors and their individual and combined effects on microbial processes in nature. The complex interplay between physical, chemical and biological feedback loops controlling microbe-mineral interactions, community establishment, and succession events remains largely unexplored in most environments and is exceptionally difficult in subseafloor habitats. To address this, osmotically powered microbial colonization experiments were deployed at subseafloor observatory sites located in the Endeavour segment of the Juan de Fuca Ridge Flank and at Santa Catalina Island, located near the Port of Los Angeles, with aims of characterizing microbial colonization and community succession on environmentally relevant substrates in deep biosphere and near-shore marine environments, respectively. This dissertation explores microbe-mineral interactions addressing major questions regarding the biological potential of deep biosphere crustal fluid communities at subseafloor observatories and the influence of nutrients on the biocorrosion of mild steel near a port of global economic importance. Microbial colonization strategies in diverse marine environments suggests that such processes are multifaceted redox-driven events where initial colonizers alter the physico-chemical states of microenvironments, triggering community successions that facilitate the later recruitment of biogeochemically influential Fe and S-cycling microbial guilds.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c40-335529
title: Robust and scalable inference with Gaussian process

description: Gaussian process (GP) regression, a powerful supervised machine learning method, has been broadly used in many applications. The key difficulties associated with the implementation of GP regression include (a) the computation complexity that increases quickly as the sample size increases and (b) the sensitivity to the presence of outliers in the data that negatively affect the prediction properties of the fitted model. In this thesis, a new method to deal with these two problems is proposed. The main idea is to split the data into k disjoint parts of equal size and apply the GP regression to each subset individually. The results are then merged via evaluating the geometric median of the samples from each individual posterior distribution. This allows us to mitigate the effect of the potential outliers in the data. Moreover, since GP regression is applied to each subset of the data in parallel, this technique allows us to significantly reduce the computational complexity and provides a way to extend the technique to big data problems.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c127-644095
title: Strategic food marketing and public relations by American fast-food retailers in China: implications on China's obesity crisis

description: Counterbalancing the huge economic gains in recent years, scholars indicate that China is in the midst of a looming healthcare crisis caused largely by obesity (Chen, 2008; French & Crabbe, 2010; Ji & Cheng, 2008; Levine, 2007; Popkin, 2008; Wu, 2006).  A problem primarily in industrialized nations and often epitomized by heavyweight America, health and nutrition scientists (Jeffery, Baxter, McGuire & Linde, 2006; Prentice & Jebb, 2003; Rosenheck, 2008) have linked the obesity crisis with increased consumption of U.S. fast foods.  With 33.2 billion fast-food transactions recorded in 2006 (French & Crabbe, 2010), and with a new Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) franchise opening its doors in China every 18 hours as of March 2011 (Hatton, 2011), Chinese residents are eating fattening, energy-dense foods with increasing ease and intensity.  Among those most affected, children are prime targets of the fast food industry and literature shows a link between fast food marketing practices and childhood obesity. ❧ In contextualizing the obesity crisis, this study explores the effects of food marketing and public relations by American fast food retailers in promoting products to key Chinese publics, including consumers and the government.  A literature review examines the relationship between obesity, fast food and China.  A second body of literature surveys Chinese public relations from a historical, political and socio-cultural lens, and incorporates case study analysis on KFC.  In addition, a quantitative study was designed to ascertain perceptions of 44 Chinese undergraduate and graduate students attending American universities regarding the influence and practices of U.S. fast food companies in China.  Finally, survey findings inform a proposal for food marketing and public relations best practices in China.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c127-648914
title: Tunable microdisk and microring resonators in compound semiconductors and silicon

description: Free carrier based modulation mechanisms are investigated for application to compound semiconductor devices, and the limits of free carrier based tuning are examined. A GaAs based analog of silicon-on-insulator technology is proposed to address the issue of substrate leakage loss. Of particular interest are the material development and the lateral wet oxidation process to create vertical current apertures. Very low-loss GaAs on oxide waveguides are demonstrated. Heterogeneous wafer bonding is utilized to create a hybrid GaAs/InP device, with an InGaAsP active region optimized for use as a depletion mode modulator. Microdisk resonators with a Q of over 8000 are demonstrated. ❧ Thermal tuning is proposed as an alternate mechanism for silicon based devices. A unique tunable resonator based mirror, the wavelength selective reflector, is simulated and characterized in detail, and this device could find application as a functional building block in a photonic integrated circuit or as a cavity mirror in a tunable laser. Extensive simulation and modeling of the efficiency of thermal tuning is performed, and a design with thermal tuning efficiency greater than 90% is proposed. Laterally coupled, high index contrast microring devices require very precise lithography, and a one-step dielectric masking process using the e-beam resist XR-1541 is developed. Silicon processing techniques are developed and optimized, and a ring resonator with Q of 96,000 is demonstrated. In order to address issues with traditional thermal tuning approaches, a process to create doped semiconductor heater elements is developed, and these heater elements are used to thermally tune several high-Q resonator devices.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c127-654385
title: Development of lithium and lithium-ion batteries for implantable medical devices

description: Implantable medical devices and applications have been used to treat many different medical conditions. Recently, the advent of new medical devices and applications demands more high power and high energy. Lithium or lithium-ion batteries is a suitable chemistry to meet the requirements of implantable device applications. ❧ A lithium primary battery using a hybrid electrode of a hybrid electrode of Li₁.₂V₃O₈ and CFₓ were evaluated with a goal of the improvement of its performance at high rates. Li₁.₂V₃O₈ has a higher potential than CFₓ at the beginning of discharge, good rechargeability, high power and good low temperature performance. The hybrid chemistry of Li₁.₂V₃O₈ and CFₓ is able to improve a lower initial voltage delay, enhanced pulse capabilities and better storage performance. XRD analysis confirmed that CFₓ charged Li₁.₂V₃O₈ during storage. The potential difference drives CFₓ to charge Li₁.₂V₃O₈ to the single phase range, where Li₁.₂V₃O₈ exhibits high lithium diffusion rate and the lowest polarization. ❧ A lithium ion battery with the deep discharge tolerance was studied. The mechanism of the deep discharge capacity decay was evaluated with a goal of the improvement of deep discharge tolerance in the implantable lithium-ion batteries. Implantable lithium batteries are needed that can be stored at body temperature with long periods of non operational conditions. Conventional lithium ion chemistries are incapable of deep discharge without capacity loss. In this study, three potentials that play critical roles in improving deep discharge capability were defined. First, the zero volt crossing potential (ZCP) is the potential of the negative electrode when the battery voltage is zero. Second, the substrate dissolution potential (SDP) indicates the potential at which the negative substrate begins to corrode. Finally, the film dissolution potential (FDP) is the potential at which the solid electrolyte interface (SEI) decomposes. The ZCP must be kept below the SDP and FDP, otherwise damage to the negative electrode will result in capacity loss. The improvement of deep discharge characteristics in the lithium ion chemistry will be used in a wide range of applications since batteries need not be kept charged and can be left unattended for long periods.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c127-658907
title: Solar heat gain and thermal comfort: a case study of a house in the Hollywood Hills of Los Angeles, California

description: The south-facing master bedroom on the third floor of a three-story single-family house, built in 2006 in the Hollywood Hills of Los Angeles, California, is the subject of this research on solar heat gain and thermal comfort.  The study was prompted by the owner-occupants noting that the southernmost rooms on the second and third floor are typically warmer than the rest of the building and that at certain times they are too warm for comfort.  It was hypothesized that the largest factor contributing to the heat gain within the third floor south master bedroom and the owner-occupants’ thermal discomfort is the solar radiation entering the space through the large window walls and that installation of external shades would substantially reduce the heat gain and improve the occupants’ comfort. ❧ Computer modeling and thermal comfort data collection from the site were used to support the hypothesis.  Computer simulation of the building’s existing overhangs using the Autodesk Solar Tool software indicated that the room was exposed to direct solar radiation in the mornings and afternoons.  Temperature and humidity measurements collected by HOBOs confirmed that the room was often too warm during the study period based on the ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 55 comfort charts.  In addition, the HOBOs indicated that the largest temperatures occurred during the afternoons with the highest temperatures recorded along the west wall and ceiling.  DesignBuilder was used to simulate the temperatures of the subject room and was roughly calibrated to mimic the temperatures collected by the HOBOs.  The software was used to test the effectiveness of several achievable strategies at reducing the internal operative temperature and the predicted mean vote. ❧ The results of the computer model testing indicated that, while the opaque shades were effective when in use, the low-e film or exterior louvers would provide more consistent improvement for the owner-occupants’ thermal comfort on warm days, especially when combined with opening all of the windows within the room.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c127-659137
title: Diffraction of anti-plane (SH) waves by surface elliptical topographies in an elastic half-space

description: The study presented in this dissertation aims at the ground motion assessment of various two-dimensional hill models subjected to incident plane SH waves in an elastic half-space. The exact, analytic solutions to the boundary-valued problem, based on method of wave function expansion in elliptical coordinate are presented. These require the technique of angular half-range expansion in elliptical coordinate to deal with mixed-boundary condition arisen during mathematical implementation of all hill models; the traction-free boundary condition at the surface of the elliptical hill and the continuity of displacement and stress at the semi-elliptical interface. ❧ In the study we found out that the existence of a hill results in complex pattern of surface displacement. Generally for nearly grazing angle, a hill shields the propagating waves, resulting in a standing wave pattern in the coming direction and the focusing of the amplitude at the far edge of the hill. In addition the presence of full-elliptical tunnels resulted in more prominent standing waves, and amplitudes of ground motion in the neighborhood of unity or less on the far end may be monitored without the abrupt jump at that edge of the. We discovered that the presence of a full-elliptical tunnel amplifies maximum displacement by 30%-70% from corresponding value of reference (inexistence of a tunnel) for the horizontal incidence and de-amplifies maximum displacement in the range of 1%-15% for the vertical incidence; note that these amplifying and de-amplifying effects are dependent on the size of tunnels. The bigger the tunnel is, the stronger the effects are. ❧ We also found out that the effect of the semi-elliptical tunnels on ground surface motion is dissimilar to the effect of the full-elliptical ones. Since horizontal incidences are able to slip underneath semi-tunnels, the weaker standing waves on the left side and weaker shadow zones associated with high jumps of the displacement amplitude at the far edge of the hill are observed. However, when the incident waves are nearly vertical, the stronger shielding effect due to semi-elliptical tunnels than to full-elliptical ones are detected. It could be said that the hinder efficiency of an elliptical tunnel depends on the direction of wave passage; the tunnel becomes better obstruction when the incidence is propagating normal to its major axis.
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c127-664392
title: Relationships between latent executive function ability and antisocial behavior throughout development: a common pathways cross-lagged analysis

description: Behavioral inhibition and executive functions (EF) are two key aspects of self-regulation, and deficits in these regulatory processes serve as risk factors for the development of antisocial behavior (ASB). In spite of the well-established association between EF impairments and ASB, we do not yet know (1) the direction of the relationship itself, i.e., whether ASB may be result or cause of EF deficits during development, and (2) the extent to which the relationship is mediated by genetic and environmental factors. In addition, there is a significant dearth in the literature regarding the longitudinal stability of ASB and EF during development. Phenotypic and biometric multivariate models were used to investigate these questions in a longitudinal twin study (N=724 same and opposite-sex twin pairs) based on data from two occasions when the twins were aged 9-10 years (Time 1) and 14-16 years (Time 2). Initial multivariate genetic model fitting results indicated that a common latent factor could account for a significant portion of the variation in five broad indices of ASB representing aggression, delinquency, psychopathic personality traits, and conduct disorder symptoms. This latent ASB factor was influenced by additive genetic (Time 1: 62%; Time 2: 76%), common environmental (Time 1: 12%; Time 2: 7%), and unique environmental factors (Time 1: 26%; Time 2: 17%) during late childhood and middle adolescence. Similarly, a common EF factor captured a substantial amount of the variation in two well-validated tasks tapping cognitive flexibility, inhibition, and control; during both childhood and adolescence this latent factor was explained by additive genetic factors (Time 1: 53%; Time 2: 49%) and unique environmental influences (Time 1: 47%; Time 2: 51%) in approximately equal measure. Longitudinal analyses indicated that both ASB and EF are stable from 9-10 to 14-16 years, and that the continuity in these latent factors is largely explained by stable genetic effects (ASB: 74%; EF: 81%). Phenotypic correlations demonstrated significant positive associations between ASB and EF measures, both within time at Time 1 (r ranging from .10 to .29, p
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c40-126747
title: An exploratory study of the counseling center at the University of Southern California
DOI: 10.25549/usctheses-c40-248267
title: Youth Radio L.A.: creating a platform for youth reporters to connect around the world through audio storytelling

description: Students from South LA have little opportunity to tell the stories that matter to them through their perspective in the media. The Youth Radio LA initiative—implemented from my work with inner city children in South Africa and implemented through South LA’s Free LA High School—is an effective program designed to give them that opportunity through audio storytelling.