K-State Electronic Theses, Dissertations, and Reports: 2004 -

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/2097/4

This is the collection for doctoral dissertations and masters theses and reports submitted electronically by K-State students. Electronic submission of doctoral dissertations was required beginning Fall semester 2006. Electronic submission for masters theses and reports was required beginning Fall 2007. The collection also contains some dissertations, theses, and reports from the years 2004 and 2005 that were submitted during a pilot test project. Some items before 2004 have been digitized and are available in K-State Electronic Theses, Dissertations, and Reports: pre-2004. Check the Library catalog for dissertations, theses, and reports not found in these collections.

All items included in this collection have been approved by the K-State Graduate School. More information can be found on the ETDR Information Page. Items within this collection are protected by U.S. Copyright. Copyright on each item is held by the individual author.

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Open Access
Modeling future scenarios of sustainable agricultural innovations adoption: an MCE analysis of biodegradable mulch suitability
(2025) Madin, Michael
Whilst agriculture production faces the challenge of feeding a growing population in the midst of global environmental change, farmers adoption of sustainable innovations to help adapt remain limited. Though a key constraint of adopting many innovations is suitability in a given biophysical context under current and future scenarios, there exist scarce studies on how suitability varies across spatial and temporal extent. Prior studies on factors influencing adoption of innovations have also rarely synthesized evidence on direction of effects. This paradox raises critical questions for research in human-environment geography. The aim of this dissertation is to investigate some of these questions, with particular emphasis on assessing the spatial biophysical suitability of biodegradable mulch (BDM) under recent and future scenarios, and direction of effects of adoption factors. The research combines insights from systematic reviews and GIS-based fuzzy multicriteria analysis techniques. The GIS-based model was used to assess the spatial biophysical suitability of BDM across the conterminous USA. The study identified the Plains, Pacific, and Corn Belt regions as high adoption potential sites, where favorable biophysical suitability (59–99% suitable areas) aligns with enabling socioeconomic conditions (e.g., higher net farm incomes and education levels). Overall, the results suggest that if the world takes the path of SSP370 or SSP585 representing higher emissions with limited mitigation, BDM will have increased relevance as an adaptation with potential to replace plastic mulch and enhance crop production in many areas of the U.S. Theoretically, the study sheds light on how sustainable agricultural innovations are not universally applicable but are highly dependent on local conditions and underline the need for place-based strategies. In the end, it is argued that we will risk obscuring and replicating the very mechanisms in which the current level of sustainable innovation adoption is limited if we fail to promote region-specific strategies.
Open Access
Coulomb explosion imaging of polyatomic molecules with femtosecond optical and XFEL pulses
(2025) Chen, Keyu
Light-induced chemical reactions are essential processes that have a profound impact on various aspects of human life and technology. A prime example is photosynthesis, where photons from sunlight drive the conversion of water and carbon dioxide into oxygen and glucose, supporting vital life processes. Similarly, light-induced molecular dynamics are at the heart of photovoltaic technologies, which convert photon energy into electrical energy, providing a key energy source. Additionally, extensive research and practical applications exist in the field of molecular and biomolecular switches, where, among other applications, photons are employed to regulate enzyme activities. From a broader perspective, animals and humans can also be seen as undergoing a form of photosynthesis, as we produce vitamin D3 in our skin when exposed to sunlight. The photochemical reaction involving the ring opening in the 1,3-cyclohexadiene molecule serves as a model system for the photosynthetic process of pre-vitamin D generation. A thorough understanding of photo-induced molecular dynamics is essential for advancing our knowledge of these phenomena and enhancing our technological capabilities. Capturing such dynamics in real time has long been a challenge due to the ultrafast (femtosecond) timescales on which many fundamental chemical processes, including bond breaking, isomerization, and ring conversion, occur. Recent advancements in ultrafast spectroscopies and the development of intense light sources, from table-top optical lasers to X-ray free-electron lasers (XFELs), have enabled researchers to visualize these ultrafast dynamics in real time, acquiring a sequence of timed snapshots of evolving molecular structures. Among the most promising techniques for such ‘molecular movie making’ is the so-called Coulomb Explosion Imaging (CEI), which reveals molecular structures by rapidly ionizing molecules to highly charged states and detecting the momenta of the resulting ion fragments. When implemented in a pump–probe configuration, where a pump light pulse initiates a reaction and a delayed probe pulse maps it with Coulomb explosion, CEI can provide unique insights into the evolution of molecular geometries on ultrafast timescales. A successful application of the CEI technique to studies of polyatomic systems relevant to chemistry requires a detailed understanding of the fragmentation processes involved in the formation of Coulomb explosion patterns and of the observables involved in their formation. The main goals of this thesis are (i) to explore such fragmentation dynamics in a few model systems, (ii) to gain detailed understanding of the mechanisms involved in the laser-driven CEI, (iii) to develop efficient routines for handling and representing multidimensional CEI observables, and (iv) to use the developed procedure and the knowledge gained to image light-driven ring conversion reactions. This thesis aims to investigate three different model systems. First, it focuses on the CEI of ethylene (C2H4) driven by intense femtosecond near-infrared laser pulses. Ethylene, a typical unsaturated hydrocarbon molecule, represents an attractive model system for CEI of polyatomic molecules because of its relative simplicity, accessibility for theory, and its planar geometry in the ground state of the neutral molecule. At the same time, it has enough complexity for studying different multi-particle breakup channels, particularly those involving one or more of the four hydrogen atoms, whose detection is one of the important capabilities of the CEI technique. The experimental results and detailed simulations presented here reveal and characterize competing concerted and sequential mechanisms involved in the formation of Coulomb explosion patterns for a triply charged molecule, disentangle two different four-body breakup pathways for quadruple ionization (‘cis-’ and ‘trans-fragmentation’), and explore possibilities and challenges for CEI relying on full atomization of the molecule (breakup into six atomic ions). As a second model system, this thesis addresses CEI of 2(5H)-thiophenone (C4H4OS) employing intense femtosecond laser and XFEL pulses. Here, we first present static CEI patterns for this molecule obtained with 2.6 keV X-ray pulses at the European XFEL and with table-top near-infrared lasers. The results show that a three-dimensional structure of such a complex, non-planar system can be mapped using CEI, including the 3D arrangement of its hydrogen atoms. While the data obtained with XFEL pulses ionizing the sulfur K-edge are more robust and exhibit much higher signal to noise ratio, the same signatures of the 3D molecular structure can still be revealed in the experiments with near-infrared lasers when using appropriate data analysis procedures. As a second step, we apply laser-driven CEI to image ring opening in 2(5H)-thiophenone triggered by the absorption of an ultraviolet (UV) photon. The CEI patterns map the femtosecond evolution of this ring opening reaction, complementing earlier results obtained with time-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy and ultrafast electron diffraction. Finally, we perform detailed simulations of the CEI of ring conversion dynamics in the 2,3-dihydrofuran (C4H6O) molecule upon deep-UV excitation and present the first experimental results demonstrating the feasibility of mapping this photoreaction with CEI employing table-top near-infrared lasers. Overall, this thesis demonstrates the capability of CEI to image molecular structures, track ultrafast dynamics across a range of systems, and provides several essential recipes for understanding and representing multidimensional CEI data. These findings contribute to the broader understanding of photo-induced molecular reactions and provide a foundation for future studies of ultrafast photochemical processes.
Open Access
Tectonic Implications of Mantle Source Changes recorded by Eocene-Oligocene Basalts from The Dillon Volcanic Field Southwest Montana (USA)
(2025) Everhart, Wyatt
Basalts of the Eocene to Oligo-Miocene Dillon volcanic field Montana (U.S.A.) record the change from dominantly compression to extensional tectonics, within the northern Rocky Mountains and accordingly, also present across the North American Cordillera. The Dillon volcanic field is composed of lavas and intrusives that crop out across southwestern Montana, but most prominently in the Gravelly Range, where they define multiple eruptive centers (e.g., Black Butte, Lion Mountain, etc.). Prior work suggested lower Dillon volcanism-initiated ca. ~50-39 Ma, which occurred adjacent to coevally with the 51-40 Ma central Idaho Challis and the 54-44 Ma Absaroka volcanism. Multiple tectonic models have been proposed to explain the ~33-16 Ma middle and upper Dillon volcanism (e.g., Farallon slab rollback, slab tearing/foundering, lithospheric drip), which erupted during the later period of regional extension and basin sedimentation. Dillon volcanic rocks have mainly high-K compositions, are primarily subalkaline, but include eruptions of small volume alkali basalts. The lower Dillon rocks tend to range from basaltic trachyandesites to basaltic andesites. Middle/upper Dillon rocks include basanite, trachybasalt, basalt, basaltic andesites, and basaltic trachyandesites. Basalts of the Dillon volcanics are often olivine rich with groundmass of clinopyroxene and plagioclase; however, middle/upper samples tend to contain titanaugite, reflecting their alkali compositions. Lavas, especially dikes and sills in the Gravelly Range, often contain small ~1-2 cm-wide crustal xenoliths, such as Eocene Renova formation sediment. Dikes and sills cut Renova strata, and some Dillon lavas overlying Renova sediments. These xenoliths, along with microscopic quartz xenocrysts, are evidence of crustal interaction, though assimilation-fractional crystallization modelling shows that this interaction had a small effect on the basalt bulk rock chemistry and their Sr-Nd isotope-compositions. Trace element and Sr-Nd isotope ratios of the lower Dillon volcanics display arc-like signatures, which we suggest reflect subduction of the Farallon plate (e.g., Ta/Th <0.2, 87Sr/86Sri 0.7072 - 0.7078; 143Nd/144Ndi 0.51204 - 51229). Middle and upper Dillon rocks have intermediate Ta/Th (0.2-0.6) coupled with Sr-Nd isotopes (87Sr/86Sr 0.7059 - 0.7043; 143Nd/144Ndi 0.51204 - 0.51236) suggesting magma sources from metasomatized lithosphere mantle. Some middle/upper Dillon rocks have high Ta/Th (>0.6) with low 87Sr/86Sr (0.7043-0.7049) which might suggest an asthenosphere source, however, these rocks have lower, and thus more enriched, 143Nd/144Ndi (0.51203-0.51232), unlike any other documented regional Cenozoic volcanics and we suggest this likely reflects lower crustal interaction. We propose that the middle Dillon volcanics are sourced from metasomatized subduction-affected lithospheric mantle that melted after the initiation of slab tearing/rollback and upwelling asthenosphere. Eruptions of middle Dillon basalts occurred contemporaneously with the onset of regional extensional tectonics and Renova basinal strata deposition. Continued extension resulted in eruptions of the upper Dillon alkali basalts, which we show were sourced from asthenosphere that interacted with low crust (or possibly lithospheric mantle melts) and resulted in whole rock 87Sr/86Sri and 143Nd/144/Ndi ratios that resemble enriched mantle (e.g., EM1-like).
Open Access
Cultivar innovation: impacts of adoption and potential for adaptation
(2025) Ala-Kokko, Kristiina
Chapter 1 – From Field Trials to Farm Adoption: Identifying the Productivity Effect of On-Farm Technology Adoption Technology adoption is an important farm management decision and is frequently made using information that is unavailable to the researcher. Aside from their own experiences, producers often rely on extension services to inform their adoption decisions. Here, we propose a novel instrumental variable (IV) approach to identify the effect that a new technology, genetically modified (GM) corn, has on farm yield using instruments constructed from extension information. The proposed approach allows us to explore the degree of the endogeneity bias in estimating the impact of GM adoption on farm productivity. Candidate instruments are constructed from variety trial data to resemble information acquired by producers from university extension variety trial reports and are spatially merged with on-farm production data. We find that failure to account for the endogeneity of the adoption decision does indeed result in a substantial upward bias in the estimated productivity gains. After correcting for this bias through our IV approach, GM corn results in large on-farm yield gains of 19.6 bushels per acre. We demonstrate that variety trial data can be used to estimate the on-farm impact of a new technology, and this approach is general enough to be applied to additional contexts (i.e., technologies, crops, and/or locations). Chapter 2 – Effects of Warming on Cool-Season Pulse Varieties in North America Climate change is expected to have detrimental impacts on agriculture at low latitudes, some of which are already being felt. The impacts at high latitudes are less certain and are still debated. We examine the impacts of warmer temperatures at high latitudes using a novel cool-season pulses field trial dataset that includes 87 locations in the Northern Plains of the United States and western Canada from 2001 to 2023. Using regression analysis, we identify temperature thresholds of 29°C for field peas and 30°C for lentils, beyond which yield reductions begin due to heat stress. A moderate +2°C warming severely reduces field pea and lentil yields by 15.7% and 18.9%, respectively. Projected warming scenarios are extended to estimate the impacts on test weight and protein content, finding that warming has small negative effects on test weight (-0.9% to -0.1%) and moderate positive effects on protein content (+2.5% to +5.6%). Findings suggest that even at high latitudes, breeding programs should prioritize heat resilience to mitigate the detrimental effects on yield of pulse crops under future warming scenarios. Chapter 3 – Heterogeneous Effects of Yield and Quality for Herbicide Tolerant Lentil Varieties Weeds are a significant biotic stressor on crop production globally. In Canada and the United States, traits for herbicide tolerance (HT) developed through genetic engineering (GE) have been limited to crops produced for animal feed, fuel, and fiber, while crops produced for human food consumption have more limited options for weed control. Clearfield varieties are a non-GE alternative that allows producers to selectively target weeds using chemical herbicides. Using variety trial data that includes over 6,600 observations from 2001 to 2023, we quantify the effects of HT technology on lentil outcomes in western Canada and the Northern Plains of the United States. Our main findings reveal the heterogeneous effects of HT on lentil output across two important dimensions, yield and test weight. This distinction is important as HT varieties result in a yield reduction of 4.2% and an increase in test weight by 0.5%. Although there is a yield reduction overall, we find that HT improves yield by 3.4% for each day early season weed interference. Later in the growing season when weed interference impacts lentil quality, HT increases test weight by 0.1% for each additional day of weed interference. Taken together, our results suggest that HT technology in lentils provides risk reducing benefits for production and may be a potential adaptation strategy for producers facing increased weed pressure at higher latitudes due to warmer temperatures.
Open Access
Understanding and indentifing musical intervals: A comprehensive K-12 curriculum
(2025) Reist, Thad
This report presents lessons from a curriculum designed to introduce the concept of musical intervals to lower elementary students, and to continue the understanding of musical intervals as students move upward by grade from K-12. I have both expanded upon others’ games and activities and invented my own games and activities to teach the concept of intervals using music classroom materials such as buckets, boomwackers and instruments, xylophones and piano. I have composed short pieces and exercises to demonstrate intervals to all grades. This curriculum begins at the kindergarten level, when students are introduced to the concepts of two pitches being the same, different, higher, and lower. By the 12th grade, students will be able to identify all intervals between the unison and octave. I believe the recognition of intervals is beneficial to becoming a well-rounded musician and is one of the initial vital steps to unlocking musical potential. Consequently, many students learned musical intervals and were able to identify them in the music they were learning. During my Masters’ studies, I was exposed to multiple music education philosophies and theories of music teaching, all of which were new to me. I do not have a bachelor’s degree in education, and during my first year of teaching I knew that I needed to acquire more knowledge to be a successful music educator. In learning music education philosophies, what resonated the most for me was Christopher Small’s assertion that music is ultimately about relationships of many types. In my Organization and Administration of School Music Programs course, the overarching theme was also about relationships. This was of vital importance to my development as an educator because I have been building a music program in my district from the ground up. Crucial to this is the relationships that I, the sole music teacher, develop and nurture with students, their parents and the community. Furthermore, bringing people together for musicking, with the goal of producing better people and societies, is important to me. In creating these lessons about musical intervals, my challenge was to build trust and make this activity fun for students. Students are naturally competitive, turning the learning of intervals into a game is a way to do so. In my goal to build a successful music program from K-12, learning foundational concepts such as intervals is critical to ear training, sight reading and playing, composition, and improvisation.
Open Access
Analysis and numerical methods for nonlocal models
(2025) Mustapha, Ilyas
This dissertation addresses the regularity of solutions for nonlocal diffusion equations over the space of periodic distributions. The spatial operator for the nonlocal diffusion equation is given by a nonlocal Laplace operator with a compactly supported integral kernel. We follow a unified approach based on the Fourier multipliers of the nonlocal Laplace operator, which allows the study of regular and distributional solutions of the nonlocal diffusion equation, as well as integrable and singular kernels, in any spatial dimension. In addition, the results extend beyond operators with singular kernels to nonlocal super-diffusion operators. We present results on the spatial and temporal regularity of solutions in terms of the regularity of the initial data or the diffusion source term. Moreover, solutions of the nonlocal diffusion equation are shown to converge to the solution of the classical diffusion equation for two types of limits: as the spatial nonlocality vanishes or as the singularity of the integral kernel approaches a certain critical singularity that depends on the spatial dimension. Furthermore, we show that, for the case of integrable kernels, discontinuities in the initial data propagate and persist in the solution of the nonlocal diffusion equation. The magnitude of a jump discontinuity is shown to decay over time. In addition, we present a spectral numerical method for nonlocal equations on bounded domains. These spectral solvers exploit the fact that integration in the nonlocal formulation transforms into multiplication in Fourier space and that nonlocality is decoupled from the grid size. Our approach extends the spectral solvers developed by Alali and Albin (2020) for periodic domains by incorporating the two-dimensional Fourier Continuation (2D-FC) algorithm introduced in Bruno and Paul (2022). We evaluate the performance of the proposed methods on two-dimensional nonlocal Poisson and nonlocal diffusion equations defined on bounded domains. While the regularity of solutions to these equations in bounded settings remains an open problem, we conduct numerical experiments to explore this issue, particularly focusing on studying discontinuities.
Open Access
Integrating machine learning for energy management: Applications in power system, building, and agriculture
(2025) LIU, XUEBO
Energy management sits at the nexus of global sustainability objectives, striving not only to curtail greenhouse gas emissions but also to balance resource conservation and economic viability. Against this backdrop, machine learning (ML) has become an increasingly vital tool, offering flexible, data-driven methods for forecasting, optimization, and real-time decision-making in complex energy environments. By leveraging high-resolution data—from solar and wind generation to occupant behavior and crop conditions—these approaches uncover patterns and adapt strategies in real-time to enhance both operational efficiency and system resilience. This dissertation explores the application of tailored ML solutions across three critical areas. 1. For island power systems with high renewable penetration, it demonstrates how data-driven frequency nadir constraints can bolster grid stability without imposing excessive costs. 2. For occupant-centric building controls, it illustrates how multi-agent reinforcement learning can considerably reduce energy use while preserving occupant comfort. 3. Within agricultural operations, it highlights how advanced reinforcement learning frameworks can align irrigation, fertilization, and renewable resource utilization to increase yields while limiting environmental impact. Taken together, these studies exemplify the transformative role ML can play in shaping a more sustainable and cost-effective energy future. The first section of this dissertation focuses on island or weakly interconnected power grids, which face unique challenges due to high penetrations of inverter-based renewable energy resources. As intermittent sources like photovoltaics reduce overall system inertia, operators must ensure stable frequency responses following severe disturbances such as generation outages. To this end, a data-driven unit commitment (UC) model is proposed, incorporating frequency nadir constraints derived from comprehensive dynamic simulations and year-long generation data. By capturing the relationship between scheduled generation and post-disturbance frequency levels, these constraints effectively limit frequency deviations to acceptable ranges, thereby improving system reliability. Extensive simulations reveal that this approach yields significantly more robust frequency nadirs than a simpler minimum inertia constraint, with only a marginal increase in generation costs. The result is a more sustainable, renewable-powered grid that maintains stability and reliability without compromising economic feasibility. Next, the dissertation addresses energy efficiency in buildings, where HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning) systems account for a considerable share of total electricity usage. Traditional control methodologies often rely on static occupant behavior assumptions, which fail to capture short-term fluctuations in clothing insulation, metabolic rates, and occupancy patterns. To overcome these limitations, a multi-agent deep reinforcement learning (MADRL) framework is introduced for multi-zone HVAC control. In this setup, each zone is managed by an intelligent agent that learns to dynamically adjust heating and cooling setpoints based on real-time occupant behavior and energy cost signals. Simulation studies demonstrate that the proposed occupant-centric approach reduces electricity expenses significantly compared to rule-based methods and by slightly saving relative to single-agent deep reinforcement learning (DRL), all while preserving occupant comfort. Such improvements underscore the role of advanced learning algorithms in achieving energy efficiency and occupant satisfaction simultaneously, thereby contributing to the broader sustainability agenda. The final section explores the Food-Energy-Water (FEW) nexus, where agriculture intersects with renewable energy utilization. A novel framework is developed to integrate solar power, green ammonia production, and deep reinforcement learning–based optimization. By producing ammonia on-site using renewable energy, farms can leverage a valuable agricultural input while also storing excess energy for later use. The intelligent control system, driven by DRL, coordinates the timing of ammonia production, energy storage, and irrigation schedules to maximize farm revenue and optimize resource use. Simulation results confirm that this integrated approach can significantly enhance both economic and environmental outcomes, paving the way for greener, more resilient agricultural practices. Collectively, these three ML-driven frameworks showcase the versatility and impact of data-based decision-making in advancing sustainability and energy efficiency. Whether in stabilizing low-inertia power grids, managing building energy consumption with occupant-centric insights, or aligning agricultural operations with renewable resources, machine learning stands out as a transformative technology. By rigorously addressing each domain’s distinct challenges and synthesizing overarching lessons learned, this dissertation provides a blueprint for policymakers, engineers, and researchers aiming to foster sustainable energy systems. Ultimately, the proposed methodologies demonstrate that targeted applications of ML can lead to robust, cost-effective, and resource-conscious energy management solutions, propelling global efforts toward a more efficient and low-carbon future.
Open Access
Improving student achievement: Incorporating weekly individual practice time in the advanced middle school orchestra classroom
(2025) McCready, Daniel
The lessons demonstrated in this report are focused on exploring the impact of incorporating student practice time during large ensemble class time in the advanced middle school orchestra. Students have been taking on increasingly numerous activities, family responsibilities, and other pursuits outside the school day and I aim to show that by incorporating one or two “Practice Classes” into the weekly schedule can over time, ultimately benefit student achievement. I have designed these lessons around ideas learned in my Master’s studies in the area of human development and cognition, instrument pedagogy, and classroom management. By incorporating these “Practice Classes” into our weekly schedule over the course of 4 months, we were able to learn several pieces of music more difficult than prior. Furthermore, I was able to attend to some of the lowest achieving students’ needs and bring their level up drastically as a result. The final aspect was that for a majority of students in my specific classroom they are not able to take their instrument home, for any reason, due to location, size of instrument, family dynamics, homelessness, or transportation. From the skills learned in the classes mentioned above, I also created handouts with helpful practice tips, reminders, encouraging phrases, and places for students to write short and long-term goals for themselves. By encouraging the students to practice amongst each other, I have seen a great increase in their willingness to let their guard down, speak up for themselves and their engagement during regular large ensemble rehearsals. At the completion of the activity, I interviewed my students and the use of “Practice Classes” effectively eliminated all of those barriers for the students who are affected by them the most and in the case of the highest achievers, they were able to learn more solo literature during their home practice sessions.
Open Access
Audiation in the high school choral classroom: Utilizing solfege alongside various methods of teaching music
(2025) Holbert, Kara
The lessons demonstrated in this report are focused on implementing the idea of audiation within the context of a high school choral music classroom, utilizing solfege regularly alongside various methods of teaching as facilitators. In my classroom I noticed a general disconnect between visual and auditory learning. Students were often able to identify notes as they saw them, but they were unable to determine how those notes were supposed to sound. Because of this disconnect, I decided to create lessons that focused deliberately on the idea of audiation within the context of a regular rehearsal. My goal was to help the students in my class become well-rounded singers, combining their visual reading skills with their aural skills. Combining these aspects creates for much more efficient music-making and allows for students to become independent singers. Throughout these lessons, I utilized the curriculum I created for sight reading as part of my coursework in the Master’s program, as well as a variety of teaching methods I learned through many of my classes in the program. As a result of these lessons, I was able to see and hear growth in a relatively short amount of time. With deliberate attention to the idea of Audiation coupled with the utilization of solfege, as well as a variety of teaching methods, I was able to notice growth in desired skills in students that will ultimately make them stronger, well-rounded musicians. Over the course of my time in the Master’s program, I have been able to gain an incredible amount of new ideas, knowledge, skills, and methods. I have gained a much deeper understanding of effective music instruction, refining my own personal teaching philosophy along the way. Through my coursework, I developed a sight-reading curriculum specifically tailored to the needs of my students, with the goal of increasing overall literacy and independence in the choral music classroom. Leadership lessons from coursework also challenged me to consider the broader impact of my role as a music educator, encouraging me to lead with a broad vision, but also keep a student-centered mindset in every rehearsal. I was influenced by many different kinds of teaching methods, including Music Learning Theory, which emphasizes the concept of Audiation, which ultimately lead me to create this project. Audiation is a skill that I was taking for granted and needed to spend more time focusing on teaching the skill within my classroom. During the completion of this project, I was able to realize that Audiation was happening throughout my rehearsals, but students were not utilizing the skill when it was needed, or did not have the vocabulary to describe it. Deliberate attention to this concept, coupled with the sight-reading curriculum I created, and all of the various methods and philosophies I learned in the Master’s program have been showcased throughout this project. From this report I have gained tremendous insight about the direction I would like to grow in as a music educator, and how all of my coursework can lead me there.
Open Access
Applications of the Hardy-Littlewood method to polynomial congruences and Diophantine inequalities
(2025) Kydoniatis, Konstantinos
This manuscript revolves around two peer-reviewed results. First, we prove that for any positive integers $k$, $q$, $n$ with $n>N(k)$, integer $c$, and polynomials $f_i(x)$ of degree $k$ whose leading coefficients are relatively prime to $q$, there exists a solution $\underline{x}$ to the congruence $$ \sum_{i=1}^n f_i(x_i) \equiv c \pmod q $$ that lies in a cube of side length at least $\max\{q^{1/k},k\}$. Moreover, the result is best possible up to the determination of $N(k)$. The latter half of the manuscript is centred around Diophantine inequalities. Let $k\geq 2$, $s\geq \lceil k(\log k+4.20032) \rceil$, and $\lambda_1,\dots ,\lambda_s,\omega\in\mathbb{R}$. Assume that the $\lambda_i$ are non-zero, not all in rational ratio, and not all of the same sign in the case that $k$ is even. Then, for any $\epsilon > 0 $, the inequality $$ |\lambda_1 x_1^{k}+\lambda_{2} x_2^{k}+\cdots+\lambda_{s} x_s^{k}+\omega|<\epsilon $$ has $\gg P^{s-k}$ integer solutions with $|x_i|\leq P$. Moreover the asymptotic formula for the number of smooth solutions is established assuming the same conditions hold.
Open Access
Big band, small town: The strengthening of music education in rural schools through performance and community service
(2025) Smallwood, Kirsten
The project and subsequent lessons demonstrated in this report are focused on the impact community service has upon band programs in rural schools. The goal of this project was to present an opportunity for the jazz band students to not only add performance hours, but to also give back to the community that supports through many different avenues. As a result of this endeavor, my students gained skills musically, as well as those skills needed to efficiently lead and communicate with each other and effectively plan an event on their own. This project was based on the knowledge and skills that I gained in the summer masters’ program, and more specifically in Learning Theories in Music Teaching. Through this project, the summer Masters’ program pushed me to get out of my comfort zone and approach performance as service and connect my students to the community. Over the course of my Masters’ Program, I have been able to discover and refine my own philosophy of music education as well as fine tune it to fit the specific needs of my students in my current teaching situation. I have learned how to approach the podium in a different light through score analysis and rehearsal techniques, while also seeing myself as the educator as someone who is a guide in students’ learning rather than a boss. I have found what works best for my students, and how to effectively apply those different methods. The high standard of excellence set forth by my professors in the summer Masters’ program has aided in my endeavor to continue to hold my students to a high standard of achievement as well as realize what effects music has on their lives and why they continue to perform.
Open Access
Developing listeners in the high school band classroom: Using student-led rehearsals
(2025) Nations, Blake
The lessons demonstrated in this report are focused on using student-led rehearsals to improve high school band students’ listening abilities in respect to ensemble rhythmic accuracy, note accuracy, balance accuracy, and expression accuracy. Young musicians often do not know what they should be listening to in an ensemble setting and teachers normally have no way of assessing their listening abilities. These lessons incorporate student-led rehearsals with minimal teacher intervention to force students to listen to the ensemble to find inaccuracies that need corrected. I designed these lessons using ideas I gained from study during my master’s program in the areas of rehearsal techniques and score study. Using student-led rehearsals led to a positive outcome in two areas: students’ listening abilities improved throughout the lessons and students enjoyed making a piece of music fully their own that they were excited to share with parents and the community. During my time at K-State, I have developed my abilities and skills by adapting instruction to the specific students at my school. An example of these adaptations is that my band program paid for a drill writer to write drill. The difficulty and amount of drill that we received was too much for my program. I now write the drill for specific students in mind, not just shapes or dots on the field. I have also created leadership positions within both the marching band and concert band parts of my program at the junior high and high school level. Having these positions creates more buy-in from students and allows the program to run smoother overall while lowering my workload. This allows me to focus on what I want to focus on: making music. Making music in the high school classroom is easier with the students’ new leadership skills and their new listening skills that have been developed through student-led rehearsals
Open Access
Teaching small ensemble chamber playing in the large ensemble rehearsal
(2025) Selander, Brian
The lessons demonstrated in this report are focused on teaching small ensemble playing during the large group rehearsal setting. Playing in a small ensemble requires a different level of playing compared to playing in a larger ensemble. In many ways, it creates a better musician because of the attention to detail needed when only one player is assigned per part. The improvement in musicianship within the smaller ensembles can improve the musicianship when placed back in the larger ensembles. Many schools in our region have well-established small ensemble programs within their band programs. This was something I had yet to develop when I started this project. My outcome for this project was to help establish our small ensemble program by equipping our students with the skills needed to do this on their own next year, without having to go as extensively into the larger group demonstrations as we did with this project. My hope is to build confidence and leadership within my older students and have them pass down what they learned through this project to develop a successful and self-sustaining small ensemble program for years to come. We started by playing through each of the four parts of three different quartets in unison. I then split the band into thirds and assigned each a different quartet. Within each quartet, I assigned each student one of the four parts from their assigned quartet. They played through each part together in their small group, and eventually were able to play as a single player on each of the four parts. Throughout this process, I was teaching them the skills needed to play within a smaller group, and eventually, down to a quartet. Over the course of my master’s program at Kansas State University, I have developed and honed many areas of my music teaching. For starters, I developed my skills and understanding of research. While I spent time in my undergraduate studies developing skills in research, it was nothing compared to what I learned over the course of my time at KSU. I feel more confident in searching for and finding materials for not only the courses I took, but also as an educator looking for ways to improve my craft. I also feel the courses I have taken have provided me with more confidence as a teacher. I feel a strength of mine as a teacher/educator has been my presence in front of my students. I have no problem getting in front of my students/ensembles. However, I feel I am providing better feedback for my students, have enhanced my conducting and rehearsing, and am helping develop musicians within a music program and not just “teaching band,” all because of the things I have learned at KSU. I know I still have not learned everything I can, but I know that going through my graduate studies has given me the passion to want to continue getting better, even as I finish up the work for my master's degree.
Open Access
An investigation of the social, emotional, and character development practices and perceptions of Kansas school-based agricultural education teachers
(2025) James, KaCee
For decades, schools have addressed students’ basic needs from dental to eye exams in addition to teaching them academic content. Given the increasing concern for student mental health, many states have recently begun requiring educators to incorporate social and emotional learning into the educational setting. In 2012, the Kansas State Department of Education adopted a framework to promote social, emotional, and character development (SECD) competencies. The Kansas SECD standards provide a framework for schools to incorporate social and emotional learning (SEL) alongside character development, supporting students in their personal, social, and character growth. These standards include practicing citizenship, personal safety, problem-solving, risk prevention, and promoting a positive school culture. This study investigated the perceptions and practices of Kansas school-based agricultural education (SBAE) teachers regarding social, emotional, and character development. SBAE teachers are uniquely positioned to foster these skills through the major areas of agricultural education that encompass the three-component model – classroom instruction, student organization, and work-based learning. The Kansas SECD standards and the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning guided this research. The central question was, “How do Kansas SBAE teachers perceive they foster social, emotional, and character development in their programs?’ A collective case study was conducted to examine the perceptions and teaching strategies of six Kansas SBAE teachers to understand how they incorporate social, emotional, and character skills in their programs. The teacher participants were interviewed via Zoom using a semi-structured interview protocol. After the interviews, additional supporting documents, including pictures of learning spaces, lesson plans, and sample classroom rules and expectations, were gathered from the teacher participants. The supporting documents provided triangulation and added to the credibility of the findings. The data collected through the case study was used to explain how teachers integrate social, emotional, and character learning in their classrooms and FFA chapters. This study identified key themes related to Kansas SBAE teachers’ perceptions and practices concerning SECD. Teachers saw themselves as both educators and mentors, roles reflected in recurring themes: SECD as a foundation, relationships and safe environments, and challenges of formal SECD. Additionally, four themes emerged in relation to how teachers implement SECD in their classrooms: creating a supportive and relational learning environment, intentionally integrating SECD through agricultural education, empowering students through responsibility, and modeling desired behaviors and attitudes for student development. The findings from this study contribute to the growing body of knowledge on SECD within SBAE and can inform teachers, teacher educators, and professional development efforts. Additional research is needed to measure the impact of SBAE teachers’ SECD practices on student outcomes. Teacher preparation programs should explicitly incorporate strategies to develop pre-service teachers’ confidence and fluency in SECD, including examining ways to model positive behaviors, build strong relationships, and create supportive learning environments.
Open Access
Student ownership in the band classroom: Assessing student understanding and increasing student buy-in
(2025) Whitaker, Brayden
In this project, I developed techniques and rehearsal strategies that give students more ownership and musical decision-making opportunities in the middle school and high school band setting. When students are able to make musical decisions and effectively lead their peers in music making experiences, it shows a competent understanding of musicality. It also enhances the cohesive atmosphere of the music classroom, giving the students a bigger stake in the learning occurring. Overall, these techniques have proven to be effective and a useful form of informal assessment during daily lesson planning. Students have been more engaged during lessons and have shown more buy-in to the rehearsal process. The experiences I have had during my Master’s degree program have helped me become a better teacher by exposing me to different philosophies of music education, which in turn has helped me form my own philosophies that inspire my daily teaching. One such self-developed philosophy, which inspired this project, is that the music classroom is a collaborative experience between the teacher and the students. The students have an equal say in the music education experience, and we as teachers need to make sure we plan for that and give our students a chance to take ownership and express their thoughts and feelings. Another development in my teaching due to my Master’s program experience would be an increase in my understanding of pedagogical aspects of music education. For example, I now have a better understanding of what makes quality literature and what aspects of that literature I can look for to address the needs of the ensembles I teach. I have also learned new rehearsal techniques that make me a more effective, more engaging teacher in the classroom.
Open Access
Developing musicianship through performance in schola: Gregorian chant as the blueprint for musicality
(2025) Phillips O'Neil, Trenton
This report identifies the regular practice of Gregorian chant as a key factor in developing singers’ musicianship, particularly through energized breathing, ensemble awareness of vowel uniformity, and a collective sense of forward motion in the phrasing. In my work with choral ensembles, I often encountered frustration when students produced a weak tone and demonstrated inconsistent intonation – issues I initially attributed to a lack of note accuracy. The typical response involved repetitively plunking out individual parts, yet this yielded little improvement in overall musicality. Upon further reflection, I hypothesized that if students developed a deeper understanding of ensemble singing – specifically in tone production, blend, and intonation – their pitch and rhythmic accuracy would also improve. Teaching in a Catholic school provided a unique opportunity: each music class began with prayer, typically one of the seasonal Marian antiphons. I observed that my choir often sounded its best while chanting these prayers, even before formal warm-ups. The consistent use of monophonic melodies and free rhythms simplified the singing experience for less-trained voices, eliminating the challenges of dense harmonic textures and complex rhythmic notation. This allowed singers to redirect their focus toward healthy vocal technique and ensemble unity, fostering improved expression, phrasing, and overall musicality. Completing graduate studies in music at Kansas State University has been a transformative experience. The practical courses, most notably Advanced Choral Rehearsal Techniques, provided rich opportunities for collaboration and experimentation with colleagues and professors as we explored innovative approaches to teaching music through performance in choir. Implementing creative warm-ups, musically responsive gestures, and pedagogical insights has transformed my choral rehearsals into dynamic, engaging music-making experiences. It has been deeply fulfilling to synthesize my passion for sacred music, particularly Gregorian chant, with these practical innovations to meet the unique needs of my students and school community. The most rewarding aspect of the program has certainly been the didactic courses, especially History and Philosophy of Music Education and Theories of Music Teaching, which challenged me to reflect on my core values as an educator. Each course inspired a renewed commitment to professional development, a deepened engagement with current literature in music education, and a stronger drive to offer the highest quality instruction to my students. Ultimately, this journey has empowered me to more intentionally use Gregorian chant not only as a meaningful expression of faith, but also as a powerful, research-informed tool for cultivating ensemble skills and musical excellence.
Open Access
When the well runs slow: How declining well yields and pumping interference reshape irrigation in the High Plains Aquifer
(2025) Haroon Bin Farrukh, Syed
Groundwater is a critical resource for agricultural resilience against climate change and surface water variability, yet depletion poses significant risks to irrigation sustainability and food security. A key concern is declining well yields—the rate at which water can be extracted—which constrain farmers’ ability to meet crop water demand at critical stages of growth. While prior studies recognize the importance of well yields in irrigation decisions, empirical evidence on their impact remains scarce. Additionally, economic analyses of pumping externalities overlook well interference spillover effects despite their hydrological and economic significance. This study address three key gaps in the literature: (1) estimating well yields and analyzing their spatial and temporal variation across the High Plains Aquifer region of Kansas, (2) evaluating farmers’ irrigation response to limited well yields along extensive (irrigated acreage), indirect intensive (crop choice), and direct intensive (water application depth) margins, and (3) estimating well yield spillover effects and analyzing how these affect water use. Using a 24-year panel dataset of over 6000 wells, we find substantial well yield declines (up to 33%) in high depletion districts, driven by reduced saturated thickness. Econometric analysis reveals that a 100 GPM decrease in well yield decreases irrigated area by 13.5 acres, water application depth by 0.47 inches and the probability of planting corn by 3 percentage points. Water use adjustments are most responsive at low to moderate well yields (250-750 GPM), with three quarters of adjustment in water use occurring at the extensive margin. Furthermore, well interference generates spillover effects on the neighboring farmers, with median well yield reductions ranging from 6% in low transmissivity areas to 20% in high transmissivity areas. High well density (10 neighbors) can reduce water use by 22.3% compared to isolated wells. Future groundwater governance could benefit from spatially explicit regulations that account for hydrological constraints revealed by well interference effects. Future research should explore how well yields influence efficient irrigation technology adoption, agricultural land values and market-based water trading mechanisms.
Open Access
Nutritional and management practices for improved sow productivity and progeny performance
(2025) Jenkins, Abigail Karren
A total of 7 experiments structured in 6 chapters were performed to investigate the effects of yeast probiotics in lactation and a pre/probiotic combination in nursery diets, evaluate the impact of increased histidine in lactation diets, assess increased standardized ileal digestible lysine levels through additional soybean meal in late gestation, examine allotment strategies in the nursery, assess calcium administration protocols around farrowing, and determine the optimal litter size in relation to functional teat count during lactation. Chapter 1 utilized 720 pigs to evaluate three allotment strategies aimed at assessing variation and determining replications required to detect statistical significance in nursery pig research. Overall, allotting pigs to pens using a bodyweight (BW) grouping strategy resulted in the least within-pen and pen-to-pen variation. The BW grouping method required the fewest pens to detect statistically significant differences. Chapter 2 utilized 28 mixed-parity sows and their offspring to evaluate live yeast supplementation during lactation with or without a pre/probiotic combination during the nursery period on lactation performance, lifetime growth performance, and immune response. The effects of combining a yeast probiotic in lactation diets and a pre/probiotic in nursery diets were not additive. However, feeding a live yeast probiotic during lactation resulted in increased progeny final BW and hot carcass weight. Chapter 3 utilized 87 mixed-parity sows and their offspring to evaluate the effects of increasing standardized ileal digestible (SID) lysine in late gestation diets on lactating sow and litter performance. Increased SID lysine through additional soybean resulted in increased late gestation sow weight gain and piglet average daily gain (ADG) during early lactation. However, litter ADG during late lactation and overall lactation was maximized in litters from sows fed 15.8 g/d of SID lysine. Chapter 4 utilized a total of 88 mixed-parity sows and their litters to evaluate the effects of increasing SID histidine:lysine ratio on sow and litter performance. Overall, sows fed diets with an SID histidine:lysine ratio of 50% had heavier litters on day 7 of lactation and at weaning and greater calculated average daily milk yield. Chapter 5 utilized 1,005 mixed-parity sows and their litters to evaluate the effect of initial litter size relative to functional teat count on sow and litter performance. Overall, sows with 1 less pig than functional teats after cross-fostering had the lowest pig mortality and sow BW loss and greatest pig weaning weight. However, for the greatest number of pigs weaned per litter and pigs weaned per sow per year, 2 more pigs than functional teats after cross-fostering was ideal. Chapter 6 utilized 933 mixed-parity sows and their litters to evaluate calcium administration protocols around farrowing on sow performance. In the overall population, topdressing calcium chloride before farrowing or injecting calcium gluconate peripartum altered sow metabolites but did not influence farrowing performance. However, when comparing at-risk sows among the 3 treatments, administration of calcium gluconate decreased stillbirths and increased percentage of pigs born alive.
Open Access
Multiscale statistical modeling of large-scale structure: from baryon acoustic oscillations to galaxy formation histories
(2025) Behera, Jayashree
This dissertation presents a comprehensive study of the large-scale structure of the Universe through two interrelated avenues: the modeling of Baryon Acoustic Oscillations (BAOs) in higher-order statistics, and the prediction of galaxy formation histories using machine learning with semi-stochastic corrections along with the validation of such models using dark matter-only simulations. The overarching goal is to improve the extraction of cosmological information and the realism of galaxy property predictions by leveraging both simulation-driven statistics and data-driven inference. The first part (Chapters 1 and 2) focuses on modeling the BAO feature in the bispectrum—the Fourier-space analogue of the three-point correlation function. Unlike the power spectrum, the bispectrum captures non-Gaussianity and mode coupling from nonlinear gravitational evolution and galaxy bias. We develop a “wiggle-only” framework that isolates the oscillatory BAO component from the broadband bispectrum shape. Using GLAM N-body simulations (with and without BAO), we analyze signal evolution across redshifts and triangle configurations. Our aligned-template method enables percent-level recovery of the BAO dilation parameter [alpha], accounting for template systematics. Robustness and precision are demonstrated using 1000 h⁻³ Gpc³ of realizations, showing the bispectrum’s potential to complement two-point statistics in surveys DESI and Euclid. The second part of the thesis (Chapters 3, 4 and 5) addresses the limitations of machine learning in modeling the baryonic assembly history of galaxies within dark matter halos. Traditional models tend to smooth over short-timescale variability in star formation and chemical enrichment histories, due to their architectural bias toward minimizing global loss functions. We propose a novel correction scheme that decomposes galaxy histories in Fourier space, identifies missing high-frequency power, and re-injects statistically consistent fluctuations into the predicted histories. This framework is applied to galaxies from the IllustrisTNG simulation. The modified histories restore variability, improving accuracy on observables such as the stellar-halo mass and mass-metallicity relation, spectral energy distributions (SEDs), and photometric color distributions. The corrections particularly enhance the bimodality of galaxy colors, the scatter in metallicity at fixed mass, and the recovery of quenched populations in satellite systems. This framework is further extended to dark matter-only simulations to evaluate the generalizability of neural network-based predictions in the absence of baryonic training data. We assess the role of mass accretion history, halo concentration, and cosmic environment in enabling accurate galaxy property inference, and demonstrate how semi-stochastic corrections improve the fidelity of the generated histories. These components address distinct but complementary aspects of large-scale structure modeling. The bispectrum-based analysis enhances the precision and robustness of cosmological distance measurements by leveraging higher-order statistics, unlocking additional information from the nonlinear regime of structure formation. In contrast, the semi-stochastic modeling of galaxy formation histories improves the realism of mock galaxy catalogs, correcting biases in data-driven predictions and enriching their utility in forward-modeling frameworks. Additionally, the thesis includes several complementary studies (Chapter 6): an angular multipole analysis of the bispectrum for probing anisotropic clustering, the mitigation of imaging systematics in galaxy survey data, and spectroscopic classification of AGN and QSO targets within DESI. Together, these efforts support the broader goal of connecting theory, simulation, and observation — advancing both the accuracy of cosmological inference and the fidelity of galaxy population modeling for current and future surveys. Note on Chapter-End Quotations: In keeping with my roots in Odisha, India, each chapter concludes with a short quotation in Odia, my native language. These reflective excerpts are drawn from Odia literature, classical philosophy, and folk tradition, and are intended to symbolically parallel the cosmological and astrophysical ideas explored in this work. Each quote is followed by an English translation to maintain accessibility while honoring the worldview that shaped my earliest engagement with science.
Open Access
The value of context in determining the sustainability and effectiveness of feedback practices in higher education: a case study of a general education program
(2025) Buchanan, Jaime
This evaluative case study investigated the situated feedback practices of a prescribed general education program at a university in the Middle East. It examined the extent to which the feedback practices on this program could be considered effective and sustainable as evidenced by the extant feedback literature in higher education. To facilitate this, the study employed a qualitative design and utilized a dual theoretical framework. First, the study interrogated feedback practices from a socioconstructivist or sociocultural perspective, since this is the educational paradigm upon which the program is premised. Second, it investigated feedback practices from a sociomaterial lens, in order to reveal the influence of non-human actors such as technology, time, and space on feedback. Data were collected using document analyses from institutional policies and other records associated with semester-specific course-related documents, faculty interviews, and an object interview with the bespoke learning management system (LMS). Purposive sampling was utilized, and data were collected and analyzed iteratively using reflexive thematic analysis. The study found that the feedback practices of the program under investigation were neither effective nor sustainable from a socioconstructivist perspective due to a lack of alignment with three foundational aspects of sociocultural theories of learning: active student positioning, opportunities for scaffolding, and culturally situated interactions. Further, the sociomaterial analysis revealed that non-human actors significantly shaped feedback practices, constraining the modality, timing, and focus of feedback information. In particular, this analysis found that the LMS exerted powerful influence on faculty feedback practices through many of its design features and data analytics. Ultimately, the study concluded that the feedback practices of the general education program were found to be more aligned with technocratic views of education that prioritize managerialism and accountability over teacher professionalism and agency out of a concern for upholding the “science of learning”. These findings highlight the need for institutions to critically evaluate the purpose and place of feedback in program design and delivery, and how their technological infrastructure shapes pedagogical practices, with implications for LMS design, faculty agency, and institutional policies that govern feedback in higher education contexts.

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