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The Impact of Cisheteronormative Policies and Practices on the Experiences of LGBTQIA+ Faculty in Higher Education: A Critical Qualitative Inquiry
Get PDFScholarly attention on LGBTQIA+ faculty has primarily centered challenges, such as microaggressions and harassment, that they face at the interpersonal level. However, it is crucial to acknowledge that LGBTQIA+ faculty’s marginalized experiences extend beyond interpersonal interactions. Policies and practices also contribute to their marginalization. The purpose of this critical qualitative inquiry was to seek a deeper understanding of the experiences of LGBTQIA+ faculty. Employing queer theory as the analytical framework, this project foregrounds the role of policies and practices in upholding cisheteronormativity. This study was guided by two research questions: (1) How do LGBTQIA+ faculty make meaning of how policies and practices impact their experience in higher education? (2) How do LGBTQIA+ faculty navigate points of friction at their institution? Data collected through interviews was analyzed with Dedoose. Following data analysis, three themes emerged, revealing that cisheteronormative policies and practices silence the identities of LGBTQIA+ faculty, expose LGBTQIA+ faculty to risks and consequences when they are visible about their sexual orientation and/or gender identity, and differentially treat LGBTQIA+ faculty for not conforming to traditional gender roles. It was also found that LGBTQIA+ faculty navigate points of friction by employing various coping and resistance strategies. The findings not only offer a deeper insight into the experiences of LGBTQIA+ faculty. They also provide valuable recommendations for practice and future research. The study does not merely provide an in-depth exploration of an important phenomenon; it serves as a call to action for higher education institutions to prioritize the safety and well-being of everyone in the LGBTQIA+ community
Thermal performance of sandstone reservoirs for thermal energy storage: an integrated experimental and analytical study
Get PDFWith the global plans of decarbonization in motion, major energy players and large oil and gas (O&G) companies are moving towards increasing energy generation from non-fossil sources. The implementation of renewable energy has a critical constraint, the intermittent nature of the renewables. Energy storage systems help overcome the seasonal intermittence of renewable power generation sources. Besides, thermal energy storage (TES) systems can optimize renewable energy management, providing equilibrium between energy generation and demand. For utility-scale projects, the TES systems must be capable of storing an extensive amount of heat.
The thermal capability of subsurface rocks to store heat makes them an optimal option for energy storage. A subsurface thermal energy storage can store the energy surplus generated by solar and wind plants. The energy excess is used to heat a heat transfer fluid; then, this fluid is injected into the geothermal sedimentary reservoir. When solar or wind cannot generate energy or the demand is higher than production, the energy stored in the thermal battery is extracted for thermal direct use or power generation. Subsurface TES can store a considerable quantity of energy at a reasonable cost. Sedimentary formations in oil and gas basins offer multiple advantages for being TES solutions. O&G basin sands are i) deep enough to store water at high pressure, ii) usually offer higher porosity (storage capacity) and higher permeability (flow capacity) than volcanic rocks or shales, iii) the water stored is confined by sealing rocks, and iv) the sedimentary reservoirs frequently offer large volumes to store the hot water.
This dissertation aims to evaluate the thermal performance of sandstone reservoirs for thermal energy storage applications. The research encompasses a comprehensive experimental analysis of 30 sandstone samples, encompassing petrophysical and thermal rock properties, rock mineralogy, and rock texture analyses. The specific objectives are: i) establish connections between the porosity, permeability and density of sandstone rocks and their thermal behavior, with a focus on thermal energy storage applications, ii) Establish correlations between the mineralogy and other rock properties, such as thermal properties and textural features, to comprehend the influence of mineral composition on the sandstone's behavior and performance iii) understand the relationships between textural properties and thermal properties, and iv) evaluate the impact of the natural heterogeneity of sandstone properties in the thermal energy storage reservoir performance
Anthropocentrism as an Illustrative Example of how Foundational Epistemologies Unconsciously and Consciously Impact the way we Live and Teach: It is not just Changing the way we Think, it is also Changing the way we Are
Get PDFClimate change poses an immense threat to the planet and all life on earth, and yet in public education the environment continues to be an afterthought. The largely unnamed phenomenon of anthropocentrism is a driving force underlying why the environment has been largely ignored. Anthropocentrism is when people rationalize themselves as existing above other life and has become an epistemological basis for hierarchical thinking and domination. Meaningful environmental education works to name and dismantle how humanity places itself above all other living beings. However, meaningful environmental education faces immense opposition because of the dominant anthropocentric mindset in education and beyond. That mindset goes unnamed in the educational discourse but is an integral part of the discourse itself. Therefore, there is resistance when critiquing the anthropocentric mindset and imagining new alternatives and possibilities. As a result, public education currently perpetuates and protects anthropocentrism.
This critical qualitative study explored how the difficulty of naming anthropocentrism manifests in K-12 education to create obstacles teachers face when trying to teach about the environment in meaningful ways. First, I examine the concept of anthropocentrism, why meaningful environmental education works to name and critique the phenomenon, and how K-12 education currently fails to do so. Second, I will explain the theoretical lens that I used to examine the data where I emphasize the importance of naming our obstacles and the power of discourse based on the work of Maxine Greene and Michel Foucault. Third, I detail the methodology and introduce my participants. Fourth, I share what I found and apply my theoretical lens to my analysis of the data. Finally, I discuss the possibilities available once anthropocentrism is named and a part of the discourse
Putting ADHD Into Words (and Images, and Videos): A Transmedial Experience
Get PDFThis project is the culmination of the author’s efforts to put into words, images, and videos, among other things, his attention-deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD), which was diagnosed during his time at graduate school. This diagnosis afforded the author a new perspective on his education so far. It prompted him to research further into how neurodiverse thinkers adapt to life in the university, and how the university adapts to their presence, in a word: poorly. There are too few accounts from scholars with ADHD or autism spectrum disorder (ASD) just to name a couple of neurodivergent identities. It is the author’s hope that by reimagining the way a text may look in the field of Rhetoric and Writing Studies, we can begin to move the needle on how we think about thinking in the classroom. While this document does its best to simulate the original project, you will get the best experience by viewing this document in its original, hypertextual format, which will be linked to in the Appendix
Governing Well-Being for Youth in Child Welfare: What Influences Decisions to Refer to Services and an Evaluation of Social Interventions
Get PDFMy dissertation focuses on the well-being of children who have been involved in the child welfare system, which has been understudied within sociology. To conduct this research, I use theories of child welfare involvement to further our understanding of child well-being for this especially vulnerable population. My analyses use quasi-experimental methods that utilize a nationally representative panel dataset. Chapter Two explores how peer support groups impact depression symptoms for youth involved in the child welfare system. I find a statistically nonsignificant negative association (e.g., when youth participate in peer support groups, their depression symptoms decrease). Chapter Three investigates how extracurricular activities affect academic achievement, and finds that participating in structured activities increases academic achievement scores. Chapter Four classifies child welfare organizations based on organizational culture and climate measures before analyzing factors influencing service referral decisions within the child welfare system. I, along with my co-authors, identify three classes of child welfare organizations, and find case, caseworker, and external characteristics are associated with the decision to refer a youth to services. I conclude by discussing potential extensions to this research agenda, before discussing more broadly how sociology can continue incorporating child welfare research within the discipline
A Framework Identifying Impacts of Ensemble Bias Corrected Downscaled Climate Projections on Regional Groundwater Hydrologic Systems in Western Oklahoma
No full textGroundwater is an important natural resource that is highly sensitive to both precipitation and temperature, factors climate models project will change in the future. General circulation models (GCM) are available to forecast future climatic conditions and subsequently, can be used as forcings to simulate the impact of climate change on water resources. Water resource managers utilize estimations and outlooks of future groundwater availability to assist in long-term planning; however, most of these do not include inputs from climate models.
The purpose of this work is to develop a framework for using climate model data from GCMs in numerical groundwater models to understand the effects of projected climates and estimate outlooks of groundwater availability on a localized scale. This dissertation incorporates climate projections coupled with numerical groundwater models to produce outlooks for a range of future groundwater availability scenarios in western Oklahoma, including in the North Fork Red River aquifer and the reach 1 of the Washita River alluvial aquifer. The framework begins with climate-model datasets, including precipitation and temperature, from 231 Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 5 (CMIP5) projections. Each of the climate projections were bias corrected, downscaled, numerically adjusted to represent the climate change trend, and prepared to be used in hydrologic models. The downscaled climate-adjusted datasets are used as input into hydrologic models, which simulate recharge, evapotranspiration, and groundwater storage variables. The first two case studies verified the applicability of the framework. The third case study proposes a novel framework that included uncertainty and extremes by analyzing the simulated hydrologic variables with a probabilistic approach. The outcomes from this research emphasize the importance of incorporating projected climate-model data into hydrologic models to assess future water resource conditions
Utilizing Flow Perfusion Bioreactor Systems as Novel Platforms for Cancer Research
Get PDFCancer remains a leading cause of death worldwide, with no signs of slowing down. In 2023 alone, the projected number of deaths from cancer is 600,000, with projected incidences at almost 2 million. Mortality rates have improved recently, but a cancer diagnosis still burdens patients and their families. This burden weighs on patients not only financially but also emotionally. For example, the average out-of-pocket patient cost is more than $2,000 and can be even higher for more aggressive types of cancer. Additionally, 2 in 3 cancer patients experience significant psychological stress due to their diagnosis. As such, cancer research is an increasingly important field that will only become more needed as birthrates rise and the population continues to live longer.
The current in vitro cancer models generally rely on 2D monolayer cell growth conformation that lacks the sophistication required to represent physiological tissues accurately. As such, many therapeutic screening studies that employ these models fail to translate well to clinical trials. Furthermore, the xenografted nude mouse model, the most commonly used in vivo animal model, lacks many critical immune components to represent drug response and survival rates correctly. Also, as anticancer strategies are moving away from cytotoxic styles of drugs and toward inhibitory and immunotherapeutic drugs, the use cases for the nude mouse model have diminished greatly. Thus, the need for novel 3D physiologically accurate in vitro cancer research models is apparent. Bioreactors, specifically flow-perfusion bioreactors, are uniquely poised to fill this void as exceptionally useful tools for cell culture that can create 3D macro-scale cultures for tissue engineering applications. They offer unique cell culture monitoring facilities through modular sensors, particularly in the liquid phase, which leaves a gap for creating an analytical sensor for gas phase volatile metabolite detection.
As such, the abovementioned deficiencies with current 2D in vitro models and the lack of proper gas phase metabolite analysis pose the guiding questions for this manuscript: 1) “How can we use novel mid-IR laser spectrometry to monitor cell cultures in bioreactors?” and 2) “In what ways does hypoxia affect the proliferation and oxygen uptake rates of cancer cells in 3D in vitro flow-perfusion bioreactor models?”. These questions will be answered by modifying the previously established flow-perfusion bioreactor system to incorporate 3D collagen hydrogel scaffolds as a more physiologically representative in vitro solid tumor model. The verification of successful cell culture was determined using cell growth and viability. Furthermore, cell culture within the solid tumor model was monitored using a novel Mid-IR laser spectrometer to detect acetaldehyde, a gas-phase metabolite, as a potential biomarker for cancer diagnosis. Further exploring the novel 3D in vitro solid tumor model illuminated the need to add hypoxia, a critical component of solid tumor pathophysiology, to create a better biomimetic model. The hypoxic component was added by directing the flow of the bioreactor such that media flowed through each chamber without reoxygenation in a series way, thus lowering the oxygen saturation stepwise. The following chapters of this investigation will focus on answering each of these questions in succession
Teaching Information Literacy Across Generations: Grandparent University at Oklahoma State University Libraries
No full textGrandparent University is a three-day experience for OSU alumni and their grandchildren to experience "college life" by living in a residence hall, choosing a "major," and attending "classes" and social events. In summer 2023, the OSU Libraries hosted a major, "Exploring the Modern Academic Library." As part of the major, a graduate student in Learning Design and Technology and former K-12 teacher teamed up with a librarian to present a session on information literacy. They faced the challenge of having to teach multiple demographics at the same time: grandparents, who ages varied widely, and grandchildren ages 10-13. This presentation will share how the session was designed and taught, as well as lessons learned through the experience.N
Stimuli-responsive porous membranes from lyotropic liquid crystal templating
Get PDFLyotropic liquid crystal (LLC) templating is an efficient approach to synthesize nanostructured polymers with a wide range of applications, particularly in molecular separation. LLCs offer diverse nanostructures, but we focus on the lamellar and normal hexagonal phases due to their ability to facilitate continuous transport paths in two and three dimensions, respectively. This feature is particularly advantageous for membrane applications. The normal hexagonal phase is especially desirable as it eliminates the need for structural alignment. This dissertation presents a comprehensive investigation of transcriptive and synergistic LLC templating approaches for synthesizing stimuli-responsive membranes. These membranes can alter their separation performance in response to external stimuli such as temperature and pH.
When it comes to transcriptive LLC templating, the preservation of the LLC structure after polymerization is highly dependent on polymerization kinetics. Therefore, this dissertation examines the initiator-dependent thermal polymerization kinetics in LLC templates. The results indicate that both water-soluble and oil-soluble initiators effectively preserve the structure after the reaction. However, the use of a water-soluble initiator not only results in higher polymerization rates but also enhances the mechanical properties of the synthesized polymer. Transcriptive templating enables the production of two-step thermoresponsive ultrafiltration (UF) membranes by employing the water-soluble initiator. Thermoresponsive Pluronic F127 (F127) block copolymer is utilized to initiate the thermal response in this study. The formation of an LLC with lamellar structure is achieved by combining the F127 block copolymer with water and hydrophobic monomers. Subsequently, polymerization leads to the creation of a cross-linked network that effectively immobilizes the F127 molecules. The resulting membrane exhibits adjustable pore sizes, ranging from 34.6 nm to 45.7 nm and 59.6 nm, as the temperature is increased from 25 °C to 35 °C and 50 °C, respectively. Consequently, the membrane permeability is enhanced and molecular weight cutoff (MWCO) can be controlled. The observed two-step thermal response is attributed to the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) of F127 at 35 °C and the melting of the crystalline structure of its PEO bock at 50 °C. The results show that conducting membrane cleaning procedures at higher temperatures can enhance cleaning efficiency and prolong the lifespan of the membrane. This approach takes advantage of the temperature-dependent changes in porosity.
Synergistic LLC templating is employed using in-lab-synthesized polymerizable Pluronic P84 surfactant to produce H1-structured thermoresponsive ultrafiltration (UF) and nanofiltration (NF) membranes. Our research findings reveal that the synthesized membrane exhibits remarkable adaptability, as evidenced by its ability to modulate thickness-normalized flux from 28 to 68 liters m−2 hour−1 µm and pore size from 2.5 to 3.2 nm when the temperature is raised from 25 to 45 °C, respectively. Moreover, the membrane demonstrates exceptional resistance to fouling, as its permeability remains largely unaffected even after 60 h of filtering charged and uncharged solutes. This outstanding antifouling behavior is attributed to the highly hydrophilic surface of the membrane. The addition of acrylic acid (AAc) to the LLC formulation allows for the incorporation of additional functionality into this membrane. The resulting membrane exhibits the capability to effectively separate dissolved salts containing trivalent and divalent anion from water. Furthermore, it demonstrates both pH-responsive and thermoresponsive behaviors. By increasing the temperature from 25 to 45 °C, the membrane has the capability to alter its pore size from 2.2 to 2.6 nm, along with adjusting its thickness-normalized flux from 16 to 31 liters m−2 hour−1 µm, respectively. The membrane effectively removes salts containing trivalent and divalent anion under neutral and alkaline pH conditions, with the option to turn off its ion rejection capability by reducing the feed pH to 4. Additionally, the membrane displays remarkable selectivity for sulfate ions over chloride ions, making it an ideal choice for salt fractionation applications. Our work on synergistic LLC templating has not only expanded the range of achievable membrane pore sizes through this approach but also successfully produced stimuli-responsive H1-structured polyLLC membranes, which is a unique accomplishment
The Ultimate Power Couple: Academic Libraries and Institutional Research
No full textThe Institutional Research (IR) department isn't just about accreditation and federal reports. From professional development and literacy instruction to surveys and assessments, the university research and accountability department(s) can be the Blake Lively to the academic libraries Ryan Reynolds. Join Michelle Owens and Caitlin Cundiff from OSUIT in talking about the many ways the academic library and IR department(s) can work together and become the "it" couple on-campus.N