Honors Theses

Methamphetamine (METH) is a widely used drug of abuse in the United States (NIDH 2013). The characteristic “high” associated with METH intoxication comes from the excessive release of dopamine (DA) into the neuronal synapse. The oxidative damage due to DA release is amplified by blocked reuptake of the neurotransmitter (Ajjimaporn et al., 2005; Ajjimaporn et al., 2008; Cadet et al., 1994;Mirecki, 2004). During the increased time in the synapse, DA causes irreparable damage to the neuron terminals leaving lasting effects on the brain (Cadet et al., 1994; Riddle et al., 2006). In the laboratory, the damaging effects of METH are used to model neurodegenerative disease states that affect the dopaminergic pathways. Three major dopaminergic pathways exist in the brain. The mesocortical pathway begins in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and extends to the prefrontal cortex (PFC). The mesolimbic pathway projects from the VTA to the striatum (STR). The nigrostriatal pathway projects from the substantia nigra (SN) to the STR. Due to their close proximity, for the purpose of this thesis, the SN and VTA are paired together and collectively referred to as the midbrain (MB). Dopaminergic cell bodies reside in the MB and project their axons to the PFC and STR. Therefore, all three regions (PFC, STR, and MB) are key in studying the neurotoxic effects of METH.

In Vivo Effects of Chronic Methamphetamine Exposure: A Study of Elemental and Inflammatory Responses and Potential Mechanisms for Zinc Accumulation in the Midbrain.

Prior to contact, the Native American tribe hierarchy looked much different to how history immortalizes it. Since most history was written from a Euro-centric point of view, the nuances of European society, including the idea of a patriarchal society, are assimilated into the varying tribal histories. This, in turn, provides a skewed perception of what Native American society truly looked like. In 1702, Francis Louis Michel, a visiting Swiss noblemen to the colonies, reported:
A Frenchman and I were astonished at the baskets and that two of them could speak English. One of them looked at us and said in poor English whether we thought that if they had been taught like we, they could not learn a thing just as well as we. I asked him where he had learned to speak English. He answered, they were not so stupid, because they had to come every year, they could hear us speak and learnt it that way. It is certain that good talents are found among them. (“Becoming American: The British Colonies” 2)
In this example, Michel only finds the Native Americans useful and valid when they exhibit European qualities, such as learning English, and this mentality has permeated recorded history, particularly the history of Native Americans. The current history portrays Native societies as inherently patriarchal and placing women in a subservient class, but further anthropological study reveals that Native American society differed from what the first colonists believed.

Tracing Native American Feminism Through Myth and Poetry

Bullying is a problem that reaches its way into schools across the nation. A study done by the U.S. Department of Education reported that 27.8% of students between grade 6 and grade 12 experienced being bullied at school. (National Center for Education Statistics and Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2011). A bully is commonly thought of as an individual being unnecessarily cruel to someone else, usually someone weaker. Locus of control is the extent to which an individual views consequences as either results from their actions or controlled by an outside force. (Rotter, 1954). Self-efficacy is the belief in one’s own capabilities to change outcomes in his/her life (Bandura, 1977). An individual’s perceived self-efficacy likely affects his or her ability to adapt with difficult situations. One hundred forty-five college students enrolled in a Southeastern university, all over the age of 18 and with a history of being bullied, voluntarily participated in this study. The General Self-Efficacy Scale (Schwarzer & Jerusalem, 1995), Rotter’s Locus of Control (Rotter, 1966), and an adapted Bullying Survey (Kingsthorpe College, 2016) were used in this study. The hypothesis for this study was those with an internal locus of control and high self-efficacy will have a shorter duration of childhood and adolescent bullying. While that hypothesis was not supported, a significant positive correlation was found between longer durations of bullying in elementary school and having a current external locus of control.

An Exploratory Look at Locus of Control, Bullying, and Self-Efficacy

Though tragic, the case of Florida’s Terri Schiavo offers an unprecedented case study. The instance's unique circumstances provide one with a valuable and illustrative example of political theory and the complexities of public policy formation. The Terri Schiavo case gripped the attention of the public on a national level. According to Terence Smith, “76 percent of the public polled (said) that they (were) following (The Terri Schiavo case) either very closely or somewhat closely” (Cosgrove-Mather, 2005). However, despite national media attention and the infamous case’s lengthy court proceedings, the Terri Schiavo saga failed to make any legitimate national policy changes. The following research will discuss how public policy’s Process Model, despite the case of Terri Schiavo and subsequent national concern, as well as “media malpractice,” contributed to the stagnation of euthanasia legislation on a federal, state, and local level, and analyze what progress, if any, the mass media has made in their coverage of Schiavo nearly two decades after their initial coverage began. Tough Terri Schiavo’s case can only be applied to the first half of the utilized theoretical model, the insight this application provides is certainly valuable nonetheless.

The Process Model, the Verbiage of the Mass Media, and the Stagnation of New Public Policy: An In-Depth Analysis of the Terri Schiavo Case

This overview examines the usage of the term “Latinx” from its coinage to its inclusion in the Oxford English Dictionary’s top ten candidates for “Word of the Year” in 2016. The study evaluates the term’s future based on its projected use in certain geographical areas and its adoption by certain professions and niche social groups. The most common motives for usage include a desire to disrupt the social normative of a binary gender system, to acknowledge the intersectionality between the LGBTQ and Latino communities, and to battle the subjugation of non-gender conforming Hispanics. This work analyzes which professional arenas endorse “Latinx,” including journalism and academia, as well as which writing mediums espouse it most often. Those who advocate against “Latinx” cite the imposition of English onto Spanish, which does not morphologically accommodate a word-final “x.” This study analyzes whether the term more effectively addresses a social issue or delays the solution to one, as well as whether its goal is to take away majority privilege or to belabor an indiscriminate equality of all.

A Sociolinguistic Survey of "Latinx"

This paper will discuss the challenges modern healthcare providers face in maintaining full compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Acts. It will provide an overview of the pertinent sections of both the HIPAA and HITECH Acts. Further, the paper will discuss potential large-scale violations of HIPAA involving potential vulnerabilities in commonly-used enterprise health records systems. In addition, the paper will discuss the traditional weak points of information security, including: people susceptible to social engineering, software that cannot be or is not updated, and targeted attacks. It will then compare these to challenges to the challenges of the United States health system prior to 1995, specifically looking at information handling procedures, and how they have changed as relating to the effectiveness.

An Examination of Modern Challenges in Maintaining HIPAA and HITECH Compliance

Quick-service restaurants (QSRs) play an important role in the overall economy. Globally, this sector accounts for over $570 billion, with the US bringing in over $200 billion in revenue in 2015 (“Fast Food Industry Analysis 2016- Cost & Trends,” 2016). To put it in perspective, QSRs account for over 50% of sales in the entire restaurant sector (“Fast Food Industry Analysis 2016 - Cost & Trends,” 2016). However, while QSRs seem to be a major portion of the food industry, not much research has been done that looks solely at this sector, and even less research aims to look at contributors to voluntary turnover in the quick-service industry (DiPietro, Milman, & Thozhur, 2007).
This study will focus on the human resource practices of the quick-service restaurant sector, specifically with how these practices relate to voluntary employee turnover. The results will help managers direct their human resource practices to better reflect the wants and needs of the employee.

Effects of human resource factors on employee retention in the quick-service industry

In looking at a current BSN class today, one will find many different types of students. There are those coming back to school, having realized their current career was not for them, there are those freshly out of high school that know they want to become nurses, and there is a plethora of those in between. The beauty of these differences though, is the way in which the student with the previous career, and the student with no career experience at all can teach each other extremely valuable lessons. These lessons can be regarding study habits, time management, social support, or most any other factor. And these lessons are needed. Due to the difficulty of the nursing curriculum at any university, there are many students that, despite past academic successes, struggle to get their footing. Oftentimes, however, the group that seems to have an overall steady footing is that of the nontraditional student.

Traditional and Nontraditional Nursing Students: Piloting a BSN Mentor Program

Due to the ever changing advancements in technology, photography is a constantly growing field. What was once an art form solely used by professionals is now accessible to every consumer in the world. This study analyzes the history of photography from where it all began to where it is today. The literature being studied focuses heavily on the history of photography, specifically in the analog, alternate process, and pre-digital era, where the earliest discoveries were made in creating what is commonly known today as a camera. The goal of this research is to study the evolution and history of photography and use this information to predict where photography will go in the future with technology ever changing. The following research will cover the early discoveries of photography, how the technology evolved from film to digital, and where digital is today, predicting the use of photography in the future.

Evolution of Photography: Film to Digital

The health benefits of breastfeeding infants for at least the first six months of life are widely known, but the majority of women begin supplementing breast milk with formula within three months after birth. In 1991, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) launched the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) to increase breastfeeding rates worldwide. This initiative focuses on providing evidence-based, maternity care with an emphasis on improving breastfeeding rates. There are ten steps that hospitals must implement to some degree in order to become a Baby-Friendly hospital; these steps focus on educating the staff and the mothers on breastfeeding techniques, encouraging exclusive breastfeeding to include the first night after labor, and providing continuing support for breastfeeding mothers after they leave the hospital. Nurses play a large role in the success of the BFHI because they work so closely with the mothers. Nurses should be able to provide care without their personal attitudes toward breastfeeding affecting the quality of care, but a positive attitude toward breastfeeding would be beneficial to implementing the BFHI effectively. The BFHI is mentioned in several newer editions of maternal nursing care textbooks, exposing nursing students to the idea and goal of the BFHI earlier than in the past.