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Examining vicarious racial trauma in college students
Get PDFRacism-related stress models argue that racism can illicit psychological and physiological stress responses in Black and African American people. These stress responses can negatively influence the overall wellbeing of individuals who experience racism. Like other stressors and traumatizing events, racism can be experienced directly or vicariously. There are many studies that observe the various impacts of direct racist experiences on Black and African American people but less is known about the possible effects of indirect experiences of racism. The present study examined the nature and negative effect of vicarious racial trauma in Black and African American college students through different mediums of transmission. A sample of 27 Black and African American students primarily attending the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga completed a survey assessing Black identity, racial traumatic stress, coping strategies for racial discrimination, and knowledge of racially violent events. The findings suggest that Black and African American college students’ racial identity influences their perceptions of racist events and the number of coping strategies they use. Furthermore, those who learned of racially discriminatory events, like the George Floyd murder in 2020, through social media experienced more racial traumatic stress. Implications for the relationship between personal racial identification and perceptions of racially discriminatory events, as well as the possible impact of chronic exposure of racial trauma through social media are discussed
Circadian rhythm in design: an application of circadian rhythmic elements to the Ridgedale Mill
Get PDFThrough the study of the phases of circadian rhythm and by applying associated environmental cues, can a building further promote health and well-being through design? This study argues that by applying design elements associated with each phase of the circadian rhythmic cycle to a built environment, overall human health and well-being are increased. Research shows, that if the circadian rhythm is disrupted “metabolic syndrome and obesity, premature aging, diabetes, cardiac arrhythmias, immune deficiencies, hypertension, and abnormal sleep cycles develop” (Brainard, 2015, p. 1). Furthermore, if the circadian rhythm is promoted through environmental cues it benefits the body by supporting the immune system as well as processes of DNA repair, which can help prevent forms of cancer (What is Circadian Rhythm, 2022). This thesis creates a hypothetical adaptive reuse plan for transforming the Dixie Mercerizing Mill located in Chattanooga, TN into The Ridgedale Mill. The Ridgedale Mill was designed for the surrounding Ridgedale neighborhood community and is split into a commercial and residential building. This study only focused on the design of the community space within the commercial scope and applies transformative elements inspired by architectural facades and scenic design strategies to promote the circadian rhythms of users. In the multifamily residential building, The Ridgedale Mill was programmed to contain intentionally minimal two- and three- bedroom apartments to encourage residents to leave their apartments during the day and use the adjacent community space within the commercial building. This ensures the residents are encouraged to leave their apartments during the day and use the adjacent community space within the commercial building. The design strategies incorporated in The Ridgedale Mill design were informed by data collected through review of existing literature, case studies, a site visit, and expert interview. The resulting design promotes each phase of the circadian rhythm cycle and demonstrates different approaches that can be taken to promote circadian rhythm in a built environment and, as a result, promote occupant health and well-being
The impact of Focused Advising on retention and completion in the community college setting
Get PDFThe purpose of the study was to investigate and describe the impact of Focused Advising on retention and completion in the community college setting. This study examined one initiative known as Academic Foci or sometimes referred to as Guided Pathways as a viable tool for increasing the number of completers at an institution. The basis of the model was to place students into groups/foci of similar academic interests such as business, computer, or health sciences. With the aid of their advisor, the student made a move forward, and they will have made an informed decision about a chosen major. Once in the major, the students followed a strict schedule of courses, which led to a degree or certificate within an allotted time frame. The number of completers was studied and compared to students with no academic pathway assigned. These students were designated as degrees awarded or certificates awarded. The population was comprised of first-time community college students across western Tennessee. Several students and/or school variables were examined to gauge their relationship with the goals of retention and completion
Increased phenotypic plasticity linked to broader geographic range size in sunflower (Helianthus) species
Get PDFHuman activity worsens global biodiversity loss, particularly for vulnerable rare species. Plant species can respond to environmental changes via adaptation and/or acclimation or migration, yet limited genetic diversity and fitness in rare species can hinder these processes. Changes in light availability from human activities impact the growth and fitness of broadleaf species like sunflowers (Helianthus spp.). In a garden experiment, we compared the phenotypic plasticity of five Helianthus species representing different geographic ranges. Locally restricted H. longifolius and H. verticillatus showed less plasticity in growth and allocation traits than widespread H. angustifolius and H. maximiliani. Rare species with narrower ranges also displayed less population-level plasticity compared to common species. Geographically restricted rare species may struggle to acclimate to changes in light availability caused by human activities, which could increase extinction vulnerability. Conservation efforts should target limiting invasive and woody species to mitigate reduced light availability in their native habitats
Transfer pathways in higher education: exploring differences between pathway and nonpathway student success after university transfer in one state system
Get PDFYears of research in higher education have focused on innovations in curricula and student support services aimed toward improving student retention and success. Despite this, increases in student enrollment and degree completions have not increased. In 2009, the federal American Graduation Initiative began with the goal to achieve 10 million more U.S. citizens with postsecondary credentials by 2020. The state of Tennessee enacted the 2010 Complete College Tennessee Act, resulting in new statewide strategies to achieve goals for credential attainment. One strategy was the guided pathway approach, intended to increase associate and baccalaureate degree completions and reduce the number of credit hours accumulated beyond degree requirements. The purpose of this study was to explore whether Tennessee Transfer Pathway (TTP) enrollment was associated with differences in student success outcomes after transfer to one of the University of Tennessee System (UTS) universities. The primary goals were to determine if differences existed in baccalaureate degree achievement or cumulative credit hours, between TTP transfer, nonTTP transfer, and native student subgroups within the UTS institutions, and whether there were relationships between these pathways and success outcomes. Attribute variables were also analyzed for association with degree completion or the number of accumulated credit hours at the time of graduation. A total of 119,000 UTS students, enrolled over a five-year period, were statistically analyzed for differences using chi-square and ANOVA tests and for associations by conducting logistic and linear regression analyses. Results showed that statistically significant differences in degree completion existed between the native and transfer subgroups, and TTP students were found to be more likely to complete a baccalaureate degree, but effects were weak. TTP subgroup numbers were small (n = 1,291). Conversely, no clear association was found between TTP enrollment and cumulative credit hours. Finally, results showed some attribute variables were significant in predictive success modeling, but associations were weak. The Black, non-Hispanic racial-ethnicity category was found to have statistically significant negative associations with degree completions and cumulative credit hours consistently across all subgroups. The TTP program did not improve the likelihood of completion for these students
Covering problem with minimum radius enclosing circle
Get PDFThis study extends the classical smallest enclosing circle problem in location science to optimize healthcare communication hubs. Given a set of demand points and potential groups, we identify the optimal number of subgroups to cover all points and the circle enclosing them with minimum radius. The center of this circle serves as the communication hub location, minimizing the distance between demand points and facilities subject to customer demand. We develop a nonconvex-nonlinear optimization model and propose a quadratic programming-based approximation algorithm to solve it. Tested on various hypothetical and real scenarios, our model effectively reduces the facility setup cost and identifies the optimal communication hub location
A computational approach for the discovery and characterization of oligonucleotide aptamers for protein targets
Get PDFAptamers are short polynucleotide chains that can bind with very high affinities to a broad range of chemical and biomolecular targets, including proteins, cells, viruses, microorganisms, toxins, and chemical compounds. They are analogous to antibodies with applications in therapeutic delivery, biosensors, and diagnostics, but possess the advantages of easy production and lower immunogenicity than antibodies. They are produced by the experimental method known as the systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment (SELEX). SELEX is a powerful experimental method for selecting oligonucleotide aptamers for chemical or biomolecular targets of interest. The SELEX protocol has seen several modifications since its development in 1990, with the primary goal of improving its efficiency and speed. Recent advances to the original SELEX protocol, such as negative SELEX, capillary electrophoresis SELEX, and cell SELEX have increased the efficacy, speed, and target diversity of the original protocol significantly. However, regardless of these advances in the protocol, significant challenges continue to exist, impacting its widespread application for rapid generation of aptamers. Amongst the challenges, reagent consumption, efficiency, and time demand are the major issues for which the present study addressed through in-silico approaches. The developed in-silico approach can be used to augment experimental SELEX protocols for rapid screening of aptamer candidates, providing an integrated method that can speed up the selection process as well as biophysical characterization of aptamer candidates in the discovery process. Concepts and algorithms from machine learning, molecular docking, RNA structure prediction, conventional/enhanced molecular dynamics simulations, and free energy calculations made it possible to develop the in-silico workflow. The work reported in this thesis covers the computational tools, algorithms, and methods developed and implemented to select high-affinity aptamers for SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid and Staphylococcus aureus IsdA proteins with excellent binding properties based on small- molecule Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET) measurements
The effects of urbanization on disease prevalence in managed honey bee hives in Hamilton County, TN
Get PDFRapid urban development may increase stress and disease exposure on economically essential organisms, including honey bees. We surveyed 18 apiaries containing 53 hives for diseases and productivity from 2021-2022 in Hamilton County, Tennessee at varying levels of urbanization. Disease levels were analyzed at 1.0km intervals from 0.5-9.5 km radii from each hive. Varroa levels significantly decreased with increased urbanization. There was a weak negative correlation between Varroa load and the likelihood of surviving the study. There was a positive relationship between urbanization and small hive beetle count. A positive relationship existed between small hive beetle counts and increased urbanization. This is significant as it indicates a changing disease ecology based on the degree of urbanization. As both urbanization and the demand for pollination services increase, it is vital to understand how honey bees will adapt to changing environments and pressures
State Anxiety on Emotional Stroop Performance and Incidental Recall
Get PDFEmotions play a role in our daily lives. As humans, we use emotions to encode, memorize, and later recall information. Emotions tend to make recall easier, since emotions can be easily associated with daily tasks and information. One task that incorporates encoding and emotion words is the emotional Stroop task. The purpose of the current study was to examine emotional Stroop task performance and state anxiety to study incidental learning effects. For the current study, 233 undergraduate students were sampled via an online survey platform. While emotional Stroop performance reached ceiling among participants, free recall and state anxiety were analyzed further. Results showed participants recalled negative words significantly more than positive words or neutral words. Meanwhile, differences in state anxiety showed small effects on recall across these word types. Together, these findings contribute to both the cognition and emotion literatures
Assessing mindfulness as a moderator between trait worry and working memory capacity performance in undergraduates
Get PDFMindfulness and worry have some antithetical qualities, yet mixed or non-significant findings suggest that practicing mindfulness alone will not disrupt worry. Working memory capacity (WMC) has been implicated in the relationship between worry and mindfulness, with some research showing that the combined practice of mindfulness and WMC test exercises had the greatest impact on reducing worry. The present study sought to test the relationship between worry, trait mindfulness, behavioral mindfulness as assessed by a Mindfulness Activities Questionnaire (MAQ) created by the researcher, and both the verbal and visuospatial domains of WMC. Worry was shown to be negatively associated with mindfulness. All WM scores showed non-significant associations apart from a weak positive association between verbal WM efficiency and behavioral mindfulness. Both domains of WM predicted similar outcomes in mindfulness. Mindfulness was not shown to moderate the relationship between worry and WMC. Implications and future directions for research are discussed