Middle Tennessee State University
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An Analysis of the Evolution of Death Narratives in Superhero Comic Books
Get PDFPopular culture has been around for centuries. It is representative of the ideas of a certain culture, at a certain time. As the society in which it is based evolves, so too does the culture it creates. Comic books were created in the early 20th century and have evolved into a multi-billion dollar industry, encompassing everything from serialized stories to blockbuster movies. Death is extremely common in superhero comic books, and follows patterns. These patterns change based on when the book was written and are influenced by events on global, national, and local levels. Understanding how popular culture understood these events can give us a glimpse into the lives of ordinary people
The Relationship Between Turnover & Team Performance in Major League Soccer
Get PDFThis study examined the relationship between turnover and team performance within teams that played for Major League Soccer. A common widespread belief exists that if team performance is low in team sports, turnover is the solution. Thus, this study attempts to expand upon the turnover and team performance literature, as well as is an attempt to explain additional variance within team performance for teams in Major League Soccer. Using literature on team dynamics, the research team examined the many potentially intervening variables within this relationship. A concomitant time series analysis was then conducted to further investigate this relationship within such a unique context. Results suggest an insignificant relationship of within-season turnover on team performance and team performance on within-season turnover. Further examination is needed to resolve this convoluted relationship and explain incremental variance in team performance for soccer teams.M.A
VULNERABILTY DURING COVID-19: AN ORAL HISTORY PROJECT
Get PDFThis thesis project was based on thirty-five focused interviews with narrators between March and June 2020 about the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the associated shutdowns. Analysis of these interviews revealed that the story of the early pandemic is not just about a physical illness, but it is also about a pre-existing societal illness. Magnified by the pandemic are underlying failures to meet basic human needs in America. Vulnerable groups such as women, students, individuals experiencing incarceration, victims of domestic violence, and rural populations have borne an unequitable share of the negative impacts of the virus, in large part because our society does not support or protect these, and many other groups appropriately. In these interviews, narrators spoke about their own vulnerability by sharing personal details about their health, their family, and their beliefs, but they also spoke about the larger issues of social justice.M.L.A
(dis)Connected: A Podcast Series on Society and Spirituality in the Modern World
No full textThis project is an eleven-episode podcast series created to explore the cognitive basis of relationship formation and religious processing. I aimed to address questions revolving around why socialization is important to human beings, what factors contribute to relationship formation, and how we are able to form relationships with invisible supernatural beings. The first part of the series spotlights human connections: why we need them, what factors reinforce them, and what happens when we do not have them to a degree sufficient enough to sustain us. I interviewed experts to gain an understanding of how the brain works and how we form social relationships. In the second part, the neural frameworks that make religion possible are discussed with a scholar of religion and the mechanisms of religious practices with religious leaders. The last four episodes contain individuals’ accounts of their own lives, connections, and religious thoughts
The Workman's Pay: The Effects of the Louisville & Nashville's Workshop on the Local Economy in Paris, Tennessee, from 1900 to 1958
No full textThis essay argues that the Louisville & Nashville's (L&N) workshops in Paris, Tennessee, provided financial opportunity for the town of Paris to grow until other industries took their place. While the workshops operated, the stream of wages to the employees brought Working-class consumers into existence in a once agricultural town. Although the new reliance on the workshops, beginning in 1900, caused problems in the threats of layoffs, strikes, and shutdowns, the workshops continued as a prominent industry in Paris until the 1950s. By the end of the 1950s, the workshops ceased operations as the L&N sought better placement of its facilities. While a big operation leaving the county caused concern, Paris soon supported other industries inside Henry County and fears of dwindling pay and population proved unfounded. Yet, the workshops left their place in Henry County as part of a once important industry in a small city, the memories now tucked away in the archives
Optimal Wireless Rate and Power Control Using Reinforcement Learning
No full textIncreased throughput and energy efficiency of wireless devices are achievable when
factors such as interference reduction, power management, and data transmission rate
selection are considered. This thesis proposes an algorithm for optimizing the performance
of wireless networks using reinforcement learning. The algorithm, a.k.a. the agent, observes
the state of a wireless device’s battery, packet queue, transmission medium, etc. and
establishes the optimal policy for joint control of transmission power and speed. Using
the NS3 network simulation software, we implement agents focusing on three different
reward functions: throughput-critical, energy-critical, and throughput and energy balanced.
We compare their performance to the conventional Minstrel rate adaptation algorithm:
our approach can achieve (i) higher throughput when using the throughput-critical reward
function; (ii) lower energy consumption when using the energy-critical reward function; and
(iii) higher throughput and roughly the same energy when using the throughput and energy
balanced reward function.M.S
Effects of Heat Stress on Blood Metabolites and Milk Quality in Lactating Holstein and Jersey Cows
No full textHeat stress has been linked to numerous changes related to health and metabolism in dairy cattle. The effects of heat stress on milk quality factors and blood metabolites were observed in Holstein and Jersey cows under varying severities of heat stress (n = 12/ 6 = Holstein, 6 = Jersey). Milk quality was assessed using increasing somatic cell count (SCC), conductivity, and bacterial load as indicators of decreased milk quality. Concentrations of some blood metabolites such as calcium (Ca), potassium (K), sodium (Na), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), albumin (Alb), glucose, cholesterol, and non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA) were monitored for changes as well. Many significant differences relating to increases in SCC (p = 0.0936) and conductivity (p = 0.0195) were observed. There were no significant findings relating bacterial load to heat stress of breed. Furthermore, some significant differences concerning blood metabolites, such as Mg (p = 0.0388), will require more research to ascertain a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms. The results uncovered an overall decline in milk quality due to heat stress as well as an unclear relationship between heat stress treatments and variable concentrations of blood metabolites
BREADTH OF THE WILD: THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DIVERSE EXPERIENCES, ANALOGY USAGE, AND CREATIVE PERFORMANCE
Get PDFA significant amount of anecdotal and theoretical evidence suggests breadth of experience is an important variable for creative performance. The present study was the first to empirically examine this relationship. Breadth of experience was hypothesized to positively predict creative performance in a problem-solving task where participants provide solutions to one of three vignettes. This relationship was hypothesized to occur via a mediated model, where breadth of experience impacts creative performance through usage of analogies. Lastly, depth of experience was posited to moderate the relationship between breadth of experience and usage of analogies. A measure of breadth of experience was developed and tested within the present study. Breadth of experience was shown to negatively predict creative performance. No support was found for mediation of analogy usage, but analogy usage did positively predict creative performance. Support was found for the moderation of depth of experience on the relationship of breadth of experience to analogy usage. Overall, this study provides initial support for the relevance of breadth of experience as well as further replication for analogy usage’s importance on creative performance. Recommendations and future directions are provided.M.A
What It Takes to Thrive: An overview analysis of the key factors that contribute to a community theater’s success
Get PDFThis research project conducts an overview analysis of two non-profit community
theaters in the U.S. in order to determine what factors of business contribute most to their success (as defined by increase in ticket sales revenue and longevity of the theater). Background research has been conducted in order to gain a better understanding of the field, and from this, five key factors have been proposed to have significant impact on the success of community theaters: steadfast core values and maintained alignment with those values, cultivation of a strong, clearly defined staff and volunteer organization, an understanding that connections and partnerships are crucial to success, actions that work to join community conversation rather than drive it, and prioritization of active programming that meets community needs. After presentation of the data, the proposed key factors are discussed in terms of confirmation or rejection by the study data
EXAMINING UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS’ APPROACHES TO LEARNING BIOLOGY WITH A FOCUS ON WOMEN OF COLOR
Get PDFDespite steady growth in national diversity, women of color continue to struggle in accessing higher education and persisting to graduation in STEM fields. Recent shifts in the national narrative from a deficit-based approach towards a strength-based approach to understanding women of color in academic settings, illuminate cultural and social factors that may contribute to positive student outcomes. Science education literature commonly associate deep learning approaches with high academic achievement, requiring students to develop life skills such as complex problem-solving, innovative-thinking, and adaptability to the rapidly changing knowledge base. However, the adoption of deep approaches to learning is strongly influenced by overlapping factors within social and academic environments. Women of color rest at the intersection of such personal and social factors; factors that were historically unexamined in women of STEM scholarship. This mixed method study first explored demographic and academic patterns associated with how introductory biology students approach learning biology, and then used these findings to purposefully select and examine the learning experiences of three women of color holding diverse approaches to learning. Through the lens of intersectionality, this study examines how the mutually constructed identities of race/ethnicity, gender, and science recognized by each woman of color impact their approaches to learning biology.Ph.D