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If You Give a Website a Cookie: Educating Children About Online Privacy
No full textInternet usage increases every year, and internet-connected apps and websites make up a large portion of this growth, so it becomes more important to understand how the information we share on the internet can impact our daily lives. From companies using personal data for targeted advertising to hackers exploiting accounts by using public information to answer security questions, poor internet practices can cause a great deal of harm. These forms of exploitation show the need for more education on internet privacy. My Privacy Awareness Learning Games (myPAL Games) was designed to address this gap in education for children and parents. The website contains fun, interactive drawings and games to test a child\u27s knowledge on the lessons provided. The main game featured is a Spot the Sensitive Information test where it provides the player with a social media post, and they need to choose the section where sensitive information is being exposed (ie. a phone number on a dog\u27s collar or a school name and logo in the background). Other ideas include a Targeted Advertising game where players will choose an ad to advertise to a character based on metadata they collect, and a Safe to Share game where the player will decide if sharing data with someone is safe in a specific context. myPAL Games aims to make learning about internet privacy accessible, interactive, and fun for young audiences while encouraging informed discussions at home
Self-Representation in Manga: The Importance of Gay & Lesbian Visibility in Japanese Society
No full textThis thesis examines the evolving landscape of gay and lesbian self-representation in Japanese manga through a hermeneutic analysis of three key texts: My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness by Kabi Nagata, and My Brother\u27s Husband and Our Colors by Gengoroh Tagame. It investigates how manga functions not only as a storytelling medium but as a sociocultural mirror, uniquely positioned to illuminate the often-invisible negotiations of identity, shame, and social position that queer individuals experience in Japan. Through the lens of Takie Lebra\u27s concept of bun (role or place in society), this project explores the ways in which queer characters seek legitimacy, connection, and healing through the performance or rejection of socially expected roles.
The sociological analysis presented in this thesis draws on Durkheim\u27s theories of deviance and normativity, Goffman\u27s dramaturgical model of self-presentation, and Dorothy Smith\u27s feminist standpoint theory. Each of these theoretical perspectives helps contextualize the affective and relational experiences found in the selected manga and illustrates how these works offer cultural scripts for queer social participation in a traditionally conformist society.
This thesis also emphasizes hermeneutic inquiry, not just in textual analysis, but in engaging with the intentions, emotional landscapes, and reflective practices of the authors themselves. Manga, in this project, is not just content to be interpreted--it is an interpretive act in itself, produced by authors who are seeking to make visible what society has rendered illegible. Rooted in both personal reflection and sociological theory, this thesis asserts that manga provides a compelling medium for exploring the challenges and possibilities of queer life in contemporary Japan
Freeing the Fremont: Visions of a Post-Automobile Portland Highway Bridge
No full textThe Fremont Bridge is an iconic piece of highway transportation infrastructure in the city of Portland, Oregon. Unfortunately, it is one of only three Willamette bridges in the city that does not allow any pedestrian access, except for a single day every year during an annual bicycling event. Consider, however: what if that were to change, in a future less dependent on private automobile usage? Drawing on historical precedents of pedestrian and car-free bridges, this thesis proposes three types of pedestrian-focused programs which a car-free Fremont Bridge could host, each of which speaks to a current aspect of civic life that Portlanders value. The medieval Old London Bridge shows a bridge used for housing, Florence\u27s Ponte Vecchio shows a bridge contributing to the economic and commercial viability of a city, and New York City\u27s High Line shows how obsolete transportation infrastructure can be turned into a park. Through drawings and diagrams, each of these three programs are explored on the Fremont, with the goal of inspiring Portlanders to imagine the opportunities possible for the Fremont besides simple automobile traffic
Working Paper No. 95, Jeremy Bentham and English Common Law
No full textThis inquiry seeks to establish that in his book, The Theory of Legislation [1802], author Jeremy Bentham (1748-1832) critiqued English Common Law while also posing solutions and alternatives. The first part of this inquiry considers Bentham’s critique of the degrees of vagueness and confusion that could be associated with what is noted as “Common Law” with its emphasis upon the “principle of expectation.” In addition, this inquiry introduces and considers Bentham’s warnings against uses associated with the English legal system and its emphasis upon the importance of “precedent,” as this emphasis is argued to open risks for abuse by courts and their judges. Finally, this inquiry considers Bentham’s proposed solutions rooted in what he advanced as “utilitarianbased suggestions.” Notably, Bentham purported that all of law should be measured through its alignment what he advanced as his “principle of utility
Improving public health data collection approaches across populations: findings from a national evaluation of fruit and vegetable incentives
No full textObjective: Public health approaches for addressing diet-related health in the United States (US) include nutrition incentive (NI) and produce prescription (PPR) projects. These projects, funded through the US Department of Agriculture Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program (GusNIP), aim to support intake of fruits and vegetables through healthy food incentives. Measuring GusNIP impact is vital to assessing the ability of incentives to improve public health nutrition outcomes across populations. Shared measures used across GusNIP projects assess fruit and vegetable intake, food security, demographics, among other variables, through a participant survey. This study explored challenges and opportunities to support evaluation across GusNIP. Design: This qualitative study used a sociodemographic survey, semi-structured interviews, and focus groups. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize survey data and applied thematic analysis was used to identify patterns in interview and focus group data. Setting: Data collection occurred in the United States virtually using Qualtrics and Zoom, fall 2021 to fall 2022. Participants: 18 GusNIP PPR and NI data collectors, 24 external evaluators, and 11 GusNIP Training, Technical Assistance, Evaluation, and Information Center’s (NTAE) staff participated. Results: Opportunities to improve evaluation among GusNIP’s participants include tailoring surveys to specific subpopulations, translations, culturally appropriate food examples, avoiding stigmatizing language, using mixed methods, and intentional strategies to enhance representation. Conclusion: To increase applicability, evaluation tools must reflect the experiences across populations. This study provides insights that can guide future NI and PPR evaluations, helping to more effectively measure and understand outcomes of all communities
Significant Bodily Intrusions : Investigations into Law Enforcement Phlebotomy
No full textThis three-paper dissertation explores law enforcement phlebotomy, the ability of law enforcement officers to draw blood. Phlebotomy is both a ubiquitous, invasive diagnostic tool as well as a social site with complex relational dynamics at play between phlebotomist and patient. Through law enforcement phlebotomy, the blood draw is co-opted from the medical field into the policing field, and the normative framework through which it is used changes: whereas medical edicts instruct providers to work with patients through an ethics of care--respecting consent and refusal--policing is not similarly bound, instead operating through a prioritization of security and efficiency. In the articles that follow, I establish sociological inquiry into law enforcement phlebotomy through a theoretical analysis of law enforcement phlebotomy and the creation of the patient/suspect; a semi-structured, in-depth interview study with police phlebotomists to understand the logics employed to justify, defend, and critique police use of phlebotomy; and a Foucauldian Discourse Analysis of newspaper coverage of this policing practice
Spousal Bereavement Enhances Proinflammatory Cytokine Production to Acute, Psychological Stress.
No full textEarly widowhood is characterized by chronic stress and is associated with a higher risk of incident depression and cardiovascular-related morbidity and mortality. Peripheral inflammation is involved in the pathogenesis of major depressive disorder and atherothrombosis and may represent a common mechanism underlying widow(er)\u27s elevated risk for both health conditions. Chronic psychological stress sensitizes the release of proinflammatory cytokines during the peripheral stress response. The present study examined whether recent spousal bereavement enhances the inflammatory response to an acute, psychological stressor. Recently widowed older adults (n = 143) and non-widowed controls (n = 69) participated in a quasi-experimental study, during which they underwent the Trier Social Stress Test, provided multiple blood samples through an intravenous catheter (before stressor, 45 min post-stressor, 120 min post-stressor), and completed self-report questionnaires. Blood samples were assayed for serum Interleukin (IL)-6 levels. Mixed linear modeling was used to test hypotheses. There was a significant time × bereavement status effect on IL-6 after controlling for confounding variables. Widow(er)s showed a steeper increase in IL-6 per hour compared to non-bereaved adults. Findings suggest that the inflammatory stress response is heightened in widow(er)s, which may contribute to the mental and physical health risks associated with early widowhood
An Example Where Taking an Additional Observation Doesn\u27t Help
No full textIt seems intuitively obvious that no part of a random sample should be discarded. However, for most students, the first formal justification of this idea is when sufficiency is introduced in an introductory statistical theory course. Students are often left with the idea that conditioning on the sufficient statistic always improves inference, even though the formal theory only says that for any statistical procedure there is one depending on the sufficient statistic that is no worse. Here we present an example on comparing two coins based on two consecutive tosses, where the optimal probability of guessing which coin has the higher heads probability is not improved by taking the second observation. We discuss some ramifications and introduce some generalizations, focussing on tournaments
Multi-Sensor Remote Sensing Captures Geometry and Slow-To-Fast Sliding Transition of the 2017 Mud Creek Landslide
No full textLandslides pose a significant hazard worldwide. Despite advances in landslide monitoring, predicting their size, timing, and location remains a major challenge. We revisit the 2017 Mud Creek landslide in California using radar interferometry, pixel tracking, and elevation change measurements from satellite and airborne radar, lidar, and optical data. Our analysis shows that pixel tracking of optical imagery captured the transition from slow motion to runaway acceleration starting ~ 1 month before catastrophic failure—an acceleration undetected by satellite InSAR alone. Strain rate maps revealed a new slip surface formed within the landslide body during acceleration, likely a key weakening mechanism. Failure forecast analysis indicates the acceleration followed a hyperbolic trend, suggesting failure time could have been predicted at least 6 days in advance. We also inverted for the landslide thickness during the slow-moving phase and found variations from \u3c 1 to 36 m. While thickness inversions provide important first-order information on landslide size, more work is needed to better understand how landslide subsurface properties and deforming volumes may evolve during the transition from slow-to-fast motion. Our findings underscore the need for integrated remote sensing techniques to improve landslide monitoring and forecasting. Future advancements in operational monitoring systems and big data analysis will be critical for tracking slope instability and improving regional-scale failure predictions
East Portland GRID: Supporting Clean Industry and Residents
No full textSupporting clean industry and residents in ways that are mutually beneficial requires a diversity of efforts. The Columbia Salmonry Group, working for the Portland Bureau of Planning and Sustainability, finds that designating the Sumner-Parkrose-Argay Terrace neighborhoods as a Green Resilient Industrial District (GRID) can, with the following recommendations, build on the work of community and city partners to sustain and grow clean industry in Portland. This area is well suited to be a GRID due to the close proximity of industry and residents, a history of over-planning and under-delivering of investment, and the engaged community. Focusing on the needs of industry, workforce development organizations, and youth, we identify strategies that center community prosperity and encourage mutually-beneficial relationships between industry and residents. By activating the potential of residents and industrial businesses, recent and future plans can ensure a just transition into a greener future