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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Item Open Access A case study about community college support practices for first-year, first-generation community college student-athletes(2025) Worrels, DerrickAbstract The National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) oversees athletics at 525 community colleges, involving approximately 70,000 student-athletes annually. Many of these athletes are first-generation college students (FGCSs), a demographic that constitutes almost two thirds of all students at two-year institutions. However, data on the percentage of first-generation student-athletes at community colleges are scarce. These students often come from low-income families with limited exposure to higher education and face unique challenges, including academic preparedness, time management, financial constraints, and social integration. Despite their recruitment for athletic performance, many first-year, first-generation student-athletes fail to persist beyond their first year. The purpose of this qualitative single-case study was to gain an understanding of the college support practices provided by community colleges to enhance the involvement of first-year, first-generation student-athletes. Findings revealed that while general support systems exist for student-athletes, few practices are tailored specifically to FGCSAs. Themes that emerged across institutional departments included the need for improved data tracking, expanded mental health services, mentoring from coaches and peers, and the benefits of programs like TRIO and intrusive advising. Faculty, staff, and leadership cited a strong culture of care and collaboration, though acknowledged gaps in targeted support and disaggregated data collection. Recommendations include the implementation of FGCSA-specific advising, structured mentoring programs, and partnerships to extend wraparound support services beyond the athletic sphere.Item Open Access A post COVID-19 pandemic exploration of teaching strategies, attitudes, and values of Southern California community college faculty(2025) Abril, MariOn March 11, 2020, the COVID-19 virus unexpectedly became a global pandemic, forcing the World Health Organization (WHO) to take dramatic action to prevent the spread of the virus and disrupt education forever. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, educational institutions were quarantined to avoid spreading the virus, forcing students and faculty to move to fully online instruction. The forced transition to fully online instruction was hard for many people. Students stopped coming to class, faculty chose to retire or leave altogether, and colleges struggled to provide services to students and faculty. Further impacting faculty and adult learners were the unforeseen emergencies and crises during the pandemic, including employment and economic loss, displacement, eviction, homelessness, loss of family members due to COVID-19, and medical emergencies (Walker, 2021). Closing campuses and moving to remote learning caused a spectrum of psychological consequences, including fear, loneliness, overthinking, sleeplessness, and stress, giving rise to a heightened sense of uncertainty (Zhai & Du, 2020). All forms of in-person participation, like graduations, public forums, athletic competitions, and social organizations, were also canceled, raising concerns about how communities and leaders perceived the campus and its role as town-gown relations shifted (Bristow, 2016). Faculty who continued teaching during this challenging time needed to take extra steps to maintain communication, collaboration, and students' emotional engagement with the learning community. This qualitative study explored the experiences of community college faculty in Southern California who taught during the COVID-19 pandemic. It examined how faculty participants adapted their teaching methods, attitudes, and educational values in response to the sudden transition to fully online instruction. Additionally, it included what new technologies faculty used in their classes and their perspectives on teaching evolved during this unprecedented shift as well as the future of online education. Findings from the two research questions revealed that faculty adapted to online teaching by using new technology and implementing strategies to engage students in their online classes better. They updated their syllabi with online etiquette, mental health resources, and digital tools. Many allowed late work and practiced holistic grading, valuing participation and improvement over traditional grading. Faculty used platforms like TechConnect Zoom and Canvas to increase interaction and foster connectivity in a distance education environment. The research findings also indicated that while faculty participants' core values remained steady, their attitudes and teaching philosophies shifted significantly during the pandemic, especially with those who had never taught online. Faculty became more empathetic and flexible by prioritizing student well-being and adapting their teaching practices to address new challenges such as student anxiety, isolation, and access to technology. The transition to online education prompted many faculty to innovate and reconsider their approaches to inclusivity and support for students. Despite ongoing tensions about teaching modalities, faculty maintained high standards and a commitment to professional development, demonstrating resilience and a renewed focus on understanding students' lives beyond the classroom. Higher education has changed, become more student-centered, innovative, and online. College faculty are teaching more online and hybrid classes while new polices address distance education, generative artificial intelligence, digital literacy, and access to resources. Ongoing professional development is essential for faculty to stay current and adapt to these changes. The research also revealed several key topics that merit further investigation to deepen the understanding of faculty, students, and institutional experiences in the post-pandemic era. These topics included disciplinary differences in teaching practices, variations in faculty adaptation, post-pandemic student retention and success, equity impacts related to gender and race, student adaptation to teaching changes, post-pandemic administrative and staff work changes, campus climate and faculty engagement, theoretical perspectives on educational change, evolution of learning paradigms, faculty employment patterns, shared governance and faculty voice, and teaching modality and student success.Item Open Access Growth of hexagonal boron nitride from molten nickel solutions: a reactive molecular dynamics study(2025) Ahmadisharaf, AminMetal flux methods are excellent for synthesizing high-quality hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) crystals, but the atomic mechanisms of hBN nucleation and growth in these systems are poorly understood and difficult to probe experimentally. Here, we harness classical reactive molecular dynamics (ReaxFF) to unravel the mechanisms of hBN synthesis from liquid nickel solvent over time scales up to 30 ns. These simulations mimic experimental conditions by including relatively large liquid nickel slabs containing dissolved boron and a molecular nitrogen gas phase. Overall, the reaction takes place almost exclusively on the surface of the liquid nickel, owing to the low solubility of nitrogen in bulk nickel and the intermediate species’ preference for the metal–gas interface. The formation of hBN invariably begins by reaction of dinitrogen with nickel-solvated boron atoms at the surface, forming intermediate N–N–B species, which typically evolve into B–N–B units through a short-lived intermediate where a single nitrogen atom is coordinated by one nitrogen and two boron atoms. The resulting B–N–B units, in turn, coalesce with growing hBN nuclei and carry nitrogen between hBN nanocrystals in an Ostwald ripening process. The amount of hBN produced on the tens of nanosecond time scale depends critically on the boron concentration, while having a much weaker dependence on the N2 pressure for the regime considered (N2 pressures of 2.5–10 MPa, Ni-B solutions with 6–12% boron by atom fraction). The highest rate of hBN formation occurs at the lowest temperature considered (1750 K, just above the melting point of nickel), while no hBN sheets are formed at 2000 K or above. An analysis of the transition pathways for nitrogen atoms shows that the final step, incorporation of small B–N motifs into larger hBN sheets, is the rate-limiting step in the regimes considered. While raising the temperature from 1750 to 2000 K has little effect on the formation of intermediates (N–N–B, B–N–B, etc.), the lack of large hBN sheets at temperatures >1900 K is explained by decreased probability of the final step and increased probability of break-up of hBN into B–N motifs.Item Open Access Residue profiles and therapeutic applications of unapproved anti-inflammatory drugs in cattle(2025) Fritz, Bailey RenéeDisease and routine management procedures result in cattle regularly experiencing pain, inflammation, or stress. The ‘Five Domains’ animal welfare paradigm establishes that animals should have freedom from pain, injury, and disease and freedom to express normal behaviors. Effectively managing pain and inflammation due to disease and management procedures can meet these basic welfare needs. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and glucocorticoids are commonly used to treat pain, inflammation, and stress. Because there are few approved anti-inflammatory drug options for cattle in the United States, veterinarians must use drugs in an extra-label manner in certain situations. However, for extra-label drug use (ELDU) to be legal, veterinarians must determine a conservative withdrawal interval (WDI) to avoid violative residues in edible tissues and ensure the treated animal does not enter the food chain prior to the end of that period. Variability in animal populations – whether due to age, breed, physiologic status, or disease state—can alter the pharmacokinetics of drugs. Thus, it is prudent to generate data to enable estimation of WDI for drugs in healthy populations and those of interest for a particular drug regimen. Industrial hemp (IH) is being evaluated in cattle as a novel, sustainable feed source and for possible therapeutic applications. Inclusion of IH in cattle feed or as a drug is currently illegal, in part due to concerns over the transfer of cannabinoids into edible tissues. However, data supporting tissue cannabinoid concentrations and therapeutic effects of IH are of interest to both promote and inform its approval as a feed ingredient. This dissertation begins with a review of unapproved anti-inflammatory drugs pharmacokinetics and current IH research in cattle. Further chapters discuss residue depletion profiles for salicylic acid in milk following aspirin treatment in cows and for cannabinoids in tissues following IH administration in steers. Additional pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic considerations for IH in cattle are explored through (1) evaluation of the effects of IH and repeated transportation events on measures of stress and inflammation and (2) description of the plasma cannabinoid profile after long-term IH administration. Salicylic acid was detected in the milk and WDI were estimated for treated cows. Results indicated that a 120 h to 156 h WDI may be appropriate; this is longer than the previous 24-hour recommendation. Following aspirin administration, prostaglandin production was reduced for up to 12 h. When this aspirin report was initially published, extra-label aspirin use was common in dairy cattle and the FDA used enforcement discretion in not pursuing action against administration of unapproved, over-the-counter marketed products. However, concerns with mass aspirin treatment of dairy cows during the highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreak have since prompted prohibition of extra-label aspirin use. Following administration of IH inflorescence to Holstein steers, a variety of cannabinoids, including the psychoactive Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (9-THC) and the bioactive cannabidiol (CBD), were detected in tissues. Both CBD and 9-THC accumulated in adipose tissue. Slow depletion of some cannabinoids resulted in WDI estimates with a large degree of extrapolation. Exposure estimates for human consumers demonstrated that a single demographic (newborns) exceeded the most conservative international toxicity threshold for 9-THC. Additional research should establish safe thresholds of cannabinoids in younger (vulnerable) demographics. Results showed that IH administration, in a complex relationship with transportation and time, may reduce prostaglandin E2 metabolites (a measure of inflammation). Transported cattle had increased activity during transportation. However, both transported and non-transported cattle lay down more following the return of the transported group. Transport elicited changes in blood parameters and cortisol that are consistent with previous reports. These data will enable the design of impactful future studies regarding IH use in cattle. During long-term IH administration, predominantly acidic cannabinoids were detected in plasma. (−)-7-nor-7-carboxy cannabidiol (CBD-7-acid) reached the highest concentrations and depleted the most slowly after cessation of IH administration. A handful of cannabinoids, including CBD-7-acid, were detected in cattle not receiving IH. This suggests that cattle not receiving IH could have detectable cannabinoid concentrations in the blood if cohoused with animals that are exposed to IH. In conclusion, our results provided information for generation of WDI following administration of aspirin to lactating cows. Our data provide information on target tissues and marker residues for post-slaughter surveillance and a suggest a promising candidate for ante-mortem testing of IH exposure. Treatment with IH may reduce some inflammatory markers. Further work should continue to evaluate the food safety profile of cattle exposed to IH as well as the potential therapeutic benefits of IH administration.Item Open Access Behavioral intentions of Saudi female students in the College of Computer Science and Engineering at Taibah University in Saudi Arabia toward using mobile computer devices in their learning(2025) Alnehari, NaifThe Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is making crucial progress and development in all fields, including education, as it develops higher education to compete globally. Among these strategies is the effective integration of technology into the educational environment, a key goal of Vision 2030. The spread of mobile computer devices among students has proven effective in student learning. However, there is still a lack of studies about the effectiveness of these mobile computer devices in higher education, especially among Saudi female students. Therefore, processes are involved before integrating any technology into the educational environment; one is to understand students' acceptance of these devices in their learning journey. Thus, the purpose of this study is to predict the behavioral intention of Saudi female students in the College of Computer Science and Engineering at Taibah University in Saudi Arabia to learn with mobile computer devices based on the constructs of the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) (Venkatesh et al., 2003). This study employed a quantitative, non-experimental survey design to collect data. The number of responses received was 134; 127 were valid. The multiple linear regression analysis was administered to answer the research questions. The results revealed that effort expectancy and social influence were significantly associated with the female Saudi students' behavioral intentions toward using mobile computer devices in their learning (β = 0.444, p < 0.001; β = 0.174, p = 0.033). Performance expectancy had no statistically significant relationship with the behavioral intentions of Saudi female students regarding the use of mobile computer devices (β = 0.108, p = 0.232). In addition, multiple linear regression results were presented, showing that the model accounted for 39% of the variance in the behavioral intentions of Saudi female students regarding the use of mobile computer devices in their learning. The current study also revealed some challenges students face when using mobile computer devices for learning. These include classroom infrastructure issues, such as limited Internet access and low-quality hardware, as well as battery and device performance problems when downloading files and applications. Additionally, some educational websites and content were incompatible with these devices. Based on these findings, the current study provides recommendations for future research and for improving educational practices when integrating mobile computer devices.Item Open Access Navigating academic momentum: Investigating the policies, practices, and perceptions pertaining to a dual enrollment program that is accredited by the National Alliance of Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships(2025) Gayle, MichaelThis qualitative case study examines the policies, practices, and stakeholder perceptions of a dual enrollment program at a two-year community college accredited by the National Alliance of Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships (NACEP). Using Adelman’s (2006) model of academic momentum as the theoretical framework and the NACEP standards as a conceptual guide, the study explores how such accreditation influences program design, implementation, and student outcomes. The research focuses on one Midwestern institution, analyzing document artifacts and conducting interviews with eight stakeholders including faculty, counselors, and administrators. Findings reveal that NACEP accreditation provides structural clarity and academic rigor, while stakeholder collaboration enhances student access, retention, and success. Key themes include governance, curriculum alignment, faculty credentialing, evaluation strategies, and equitable outreach. The study concludes that an intentionally structured dual enrollment program can foster academic momentum by enabling students to earn transferable credits, adapt to postsecondary environments, and graduate on accelerated timelines. Recommendations highlight the need for dedicated advising, improved enrollment systems, and broader access strategies to expand program efficacy.Item Open Access Pain modeling and NSAID pharmacology in meat-type goats: Development, comparative efficacy, and pharmacokinetics(2025) Weeder, MikaelaIn recent years, there has been a growing trend among consumers of animal products to prioritize the ethical treatment of animals. Most animal products are derived from food-producing animals, including but not limited to cattle, pigs, poultry, sheep, and goats. Ensuring the ethical treatment of food animals includes addressing a range of animal welfare concerns, including pain recognition and pain alleviation. Pain responses in livestock animals are often challenging to interpret and assess objectively due to their complex nature and the inherent stoicism of prey animal species. This stoicism, while adaptive for survival, complicates the recognition and effective treatment of pain in food animal species, making pain management a significant welfare and veterinary challenge. Goats have become increasingly popular in recent years, both as companion animals and for production purposes. However, compared to other livestock species, the timely and accurate recognition and treatment of pain in goats remains limited. Painful events in goats commonly arise from routine husbandry procedures such as disbudding and castration, as well as from health conditions like lameness or mastitis. While these events are challenging, effective pain management is essential for ensuring positive animal welfare and optimizing productivity. Efficient and timely pain management not only ensures the ethical treatment of livestock animals like goats but also helps address growing concerns among consumers of animal products regarding animal welfare. This dissertation presents a comprehensive evaluation of three amphotericin B-induced lameness models to develop a reliable and repeatable transient synovitis model in meat-type goats. A species-specific grimace scoring system for goats is also introduced to support behavioral pain assessment. The analgesic efficacy of firocoxib and meloxicam is assessed following surgical castration in meat-type goats. Additionally, the effectiveness of firocoxib, meloxicam, and transdermal flunixin, each administered at three different dosages, is evaluated after lameness induction with amphotericin B, using both behavioral assessments and pain-specific biomarkers. Finally, the pharmacokinetic profiles of firocoxib, meloxicam, and transdermal flunixin at varying dosages are reported using descriptive statistical analyses. The results indicate that an amphotericin B lameness model, using a dose of 5 mg/0.25 mL, is a reliable and repeatable method for inducing transient synovitis in meat-type goats for research purposes. Pain assessment tools, including Visual Lameness Scoring (VLS), Visual Analogue Scoring (VAS), and Grimace Scoring, consistently indicated that lameness is a painful condition in goats. Additionally, the Grimace Scoring System developed specifically for evaluating facial expressions in goats during this study proved to be a successful tool for assessing pain-related grimacing behavior. Our results suggest that pain experienced by male goats during surgical castration may be effectively alleviated through the administration of oral meloxicam. The current study provides evidence that surgical castration is a painful husbandry procedure for goats, as demonstrated by multiple pain assessment methods, including kinetic gait analysis, plasma cortisol levels, and Visual Analogue Scoring (VAS). Kinetic gait analysis revealed altered weight distribution, with reduced weight-bearing in the rear limbs compared to the front limbs following castration. Plasma cortisol concentrations peaked immediately after castration but decreased following analgesic intervention. Additionally, VAS scores were consistently higher at 24, 48, and 72 hours post-castration in goats treated with firocoxib compared to those treated with meloxicam or control goats, suggesting meloxicam may offer more effective pain relief. In goats with experimentally induced lameness, analgesic interventions with transdermal flunixin at 3.3 mg/kg and 5.0 mg/kg were effective in reducing pain. Among treatments, the Mechanical Nociception Threshold (MNT) difference between lame and sound limbs was lowest in the high-dose transdermal flunixin group (5.0 mg/kg), indicating effective analgesia. Kinetic gait parameters, including stance time, stride length, peak force, and contact force, showed the smallest differences between lame and sound limb comparisons in the low-and high-dose transdermal flunixin groups (3.3mg/kg and 5.0mg/kg). Visual Lameness Scores (VLS) were reported to be lowest in the low-dose flunixin group on average (3.3 mg/kg), while Visual Analogue Scores (VAS) were lowest in the high-dose group on average (5.0 mg/kg). Descriptive pharmacokinetic data were collected for firocoxib, meloxicam, and transdermal flunixin at three dosage levels for each drug. To conclude, these results indicate that pain-associated outcome measures previously used in livestock species such as cattle are also effective in assessing pain in goats. There is a clear animal welfare benefit for meat goats that receive analgesia prior to or during painful procedures, such as surgical castration or treatment for lameness. Further research is warranted to investigate species-specific pain indicators relevant to goats, and to optimize analgesic strategies for managing pain during procedures like castration or in cases of lameness. Such studies will help provide more effective pain control options for meat-type goats.Item Open Access Geochronological and mineralizing fluid constraints associated with the Washita Valley Fault System(2025) Rickert, JamesAbstract The Arbuckle Mountains, Oklahoma, correspond to an inverted aulacogen uplifted during the Pennsylvanian (320-290 Ma). The Arbuckle Mountains are affected by a large-scale strike-slip fault system: the Pennsylvanian Washita Valley Fault System. Based on stable (O, C) and radiogenic Strontium isotope approaches on carbonate rocks and veins, previous studies have attempted to resolve the syn-tectonic diagenetic and paleo fluid-flow history of the Arbuckle Mountains. Results from these studies suggest that the diagenetic alteration of carbonate exposed within the Arbuckle Mountains was dominated by meteoric fluid structurally channelized along fault systems. Although the principal tectonic phase is linked to the Pennsylvanian Arbuckle Orogeny, two other deformation events have been documented on the field, suggesting a long lasting and complicated tectonic history, opening debate about the exact timing of the sinistral Washita Valley Fault System and its related paleo-fluid flow. To resolve the exact timing of the Washita Valley Fault System activity, we performed detailed field-based structural analysis coupled with in-situ U-Pb analyses on fault related carbonate veins. In addition, we used conventional O and C stable, and ∆47 clumped isotope analyses on carbonate veins and their direct host rocks to document the associated fluid-related alteration. Our preliminary results suggest that the Washita Valley Fault was active during Early Cretaceous (140-109 Ma), contradicting previously proposed Pennsylvanian ages (320-290 Ma) estimated by either stratigraphic correlation or from seismic data interpretation. In addition, our new stable isotope data also suggest that the Washita Valley Fault System acted as an open hydrological fluid system involving marine and meteoric water at 44-68 ˚C during its activity.Item Open Access Defining affordable housing: a study of secondary and tertiary impacts to housing affordability in Habitat for Humanity clients(2025) Isola, Andrew Charles IVHousing affordability is an important topic in the United States. Many communities currently have both a shortage in housing stock and, more importantly, a shortage in affordable housing stock. Many proposed policy and practice solutions exist to ease the strain on communities caused by the lack of affordable housing. Many of the proposed solutions are economic in nature, either supply side or demand side. However, research suggests that factors that impact housing affordability are more than just economic in nature but are also social and environmental in nature. By studying Habitat for Humanity clients in the state of North Carolina, this paper defines the myriad social, environmental, and economic factors that impact housing affordability and models the interactions between these factors, residents, and communities. These factors can be ranked as primary, secondary, or tertiary impacts to housing affordability.Item Open Access Participatory mapping as a tool for social change: a tale of community development efforts in Northeast Kansas and Western Guatemala(2025) Jeje, Emmanuel AkinloluCompared to urban areas, small and rural communities generally face challenges such as poverty lower educational, lack of infrastructure and services and limited connectivity, (Hunsaker & Kantayya, 2010; Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, 2016). Post and Ruelle (2021) note that challenges of rural areas highlight the need for deeper engagement between universities and communities through community-engaged scholarship (CES). Cinderby (2010) describe participatory mapping as crucial for fostering collaboration and engagement among diverse community members and stakeholders. However, it is difficult to achieve collaborative action in small and rural areas due to prevailing challenges in these areas (White & Boyle, 2021). If small and rural communities continue to underutilize collaborative actions that CES and participatory mapping potentially bring, these rural areas are more likely to miss out on the social change and transformative benefits of collaborative relationships and such areas will fall behind in terms of community development. The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore how local dynamics, individual reflections and collective experience shape engagement in social change through participatory mapping processes in small and rural communities. To address this purpose, this study examined the experiences of 13 local residents in two small and rural communities—Ogden, Kansas in the United States and Panajachel, Sololá in Guatemala. The research gap addressed is a general paucity of literature exploring how to use participatory mapping in rural CES projects (McCall & Dunn, 2011). Most studies on CES are conducted in non-rural contexts where resources, infrastructure, and digital literacy are higher (Sutin & Bethea, 2015). There is a general lack of studies exploring how participatory mapping and CES can be integrated to contribute to positive social change and community development in small and rural communities. The qualitative research approach was guided by an interpretivist perspective, and I conducted this exploratory multiple case inquiry through the lenses of the social change, innovation, and technology and social change leadership framework. The study participants were purposively selected from local citizens, business proprietors, civic leaders and community organizations representatives who had previously participated in the participatory mapping process facilitated in Ogden and Panajachel preceding this study. I conducted semi-structured interviews with four participants in Ogden and seven participants in Panajachel. Two rounds of one focus group discussion were conducted in Ogden, Kansas and it consisted of six participants and two rounds of focus groups comprising seven participants were conducted in Panajachel. The qualitative data was analyzed using thematic analysis, chiefly the inductive approach. The major findings of the study illustrated that in the small and rural communities of Ogden, Kansas and Panajachel, Guatemala, there are historically low levels of collaboration among community members and leadership challenges (lack of clear purpose, vision and passion, lack of knowledge and skills, lack of effective communication) and lack of resources pose as challenges to collaboration and any efforts designed to bring social change. The findings demonstrate understanding the purpose of collaboration, effective communication, motivated community members, community advocates, and inclusivity are critical pre-conditions that should prevail for successful collaboration and participatory mapping process. The findings showed that the participatory mapping processes contributed to capacity building at both community level (community awareness and knowledge acquisition) and individual levels (empowerment, decision-making, knowledge and experience acquisition). Based on the findings the recommendations provided include ((a) institutionalize participatory mapping in community mapping process, (b) advocacy and mobilization, (c) develop community structures to act as center of collaboration and engagement, (d) intentionally involve people that are disengaged in community development.Item Open Access Developing an experimental paradigm for the study of loot boxes(2025) Hancock, Patrick McMillenLoot boxes are lucrative random reward systems prominently featured in the modern video game industry. Psychological research on loot boxes has relied primarily on self-report correlational studies, which have found concerning similarities between loot boxes and gambling that warrant further study in an experimental paradigm. However, loot boxes may also serve as a model to better understand human operant conditioning, which often fails to replicate the results of animal learning studies. In pursuit of both of these goals, we drew from the cognitive decision-making and operant conditioning literature to develop an experimental paradigm for the study of loot boxes. In two experiments, the paradigm was used to investigate how different reinforcement schedules (fixed-ratio, variable-ratio, and random-ratio) and schedule variability (Study 1), as well as variable reinforcement magnitude (Study 2), influenced players' decisions to open loot boxes. Participants in Study 1 initially opened loot boxes more on highly variable schedules, but the effect was short-lived. Study 2 found no effects of variable magnitude on loot box opening decisions. Although we failed to find support for any of our hypotheses, we discuss a number of modifications that can be made to the paradigm in future studies.Item Open Access Pollinators in a changing world: climate change and grazing impacts on bee communities(2025) Brunette, August JamesPollinators face many threats today including habitat loss and fragmentation, increased pesticide usage, and new pathogens. Climate change can accentuate these threats through increased temperatures, expanded arid areas, and more frequent and intense extreme weather events. Additionally, grasslands are among the world’s most imperiled ecosystems, and bees in the prairies of Kansas face a variety of challenges. Kansas prairies vary based on their management from cattle grazing as well as along a longitudinal precipitation gradient. The objectives of this work are to 1) understand the effects of climate change on pollinators and identify knowledge gaps in this field and 2) determine the effects of grazing on prairie bee communities along a precipitation gradient in Kansas. To better understand how climate change impacts pollinators we conducted a systematic review of the literature and utilized a vote-counting approach to summarize the results. We found that climate change has an overall negative impact on pollinators which includes effects like, range reductions, phenological mismatch, and reduced pollinator health and fitness. Community level effects such as abundance, richness, and diversity showed mixed responses indicating that pollinator species respond differently to climate change. To identify the effects of grazing on prairie bee communities throughout Kansas, we sampled 30 prairie sites spread across the precipitation gradient found in the state during the summer of 2023. These sites were divided evenly amongst tallgrass, shortgrass, and mixedgrass prairies. Within each prairie type, five sites were grazed and five were ungrazed. We found that bees were most impacted by grazing in the shortgrass prairies of western Kansas where grazing had the greatest effect on bee abundance and community composition. We also found that region effects usually had a stronger effect on bee communities than grazing, and that these effects were often mediated through differences in floral abundance. These findings offer insights into how a changing climate, and management practices can impact pollinators, while informing bee conservation efforts in Kansas and identifying knowledge gaps and directing future research to protect pollinators globally.Item Open Access Understanding material properties and performance enabled by molecular simulations and machine learning potentials(2025) Deng, HaoMachine learning potentials (MLPs) are being rapidly adopted to describe complex potential energy surfaces and to solve emerging materials science and engineering problems. Trained against quantum mechanical datasets, MLPs are versatile mathematical surrogates to describe various chemical and physical phenomena originating from atomistic interactions. MLPs are notably superior over classical interatomic force fields owing to their high training flexibility, efficiency, and accuracy. In this thesis, artificial neural network (ANN), sparse Gaussian process (SGP), and neural equivariant MLPs were developed and applied in the investigations of mechanical and thermodynamic behaviors of metals, main-group semiconductors, and perovskites. In Chapter 3, a high-dimensional NN potential (HDNNP) was developed for the condensed phase nickel. This HDNNP trained using the geometry and force data extracted directly from ab initio molecular dynamics can predict the melting point of face-centered cubic nickel within a few Kelvins of the true value. In Chapter 4, the thermodynamic stabilities of icosahedral boron allotropes, its phase diagram were predicted with a SGP MLP trained using an on-the-fly active learning scheme. In Chapter 5, a neural equivariant interatomic potential was employed to tackle challenges associated with the variations of elemental configurations in a high-performance air electrode perovskite (i.e., PrNi[subscript 1-δ]Co[subscript δ]O₃) for protonic ceramic electrochemical cell (PCEC) applications. MLP-based phonon calculations suggest that the Ni/Co occupancy affects lattice thermal and chemical expansions differently, impacting a tradeoff between PCEC performance and stability. In Chapter 6, the neural equivariant MLP was used to study BaZr[subscript 1-δ]Y[subscript δ]O₃ (BZY), a proton-conducting electrolyte used in PCEC assembly, paving the way to provide solutions to improve scalability of future PCEC manufacturing.Item Open Access Geomechanical, petrophysical, and mineralogical properties of limestone samples from Kansas(2025) Osorio, NelsyThe use of limestone in aggregate production and infrastructure projects necessitates a comprehensive investigation of its geomechanical and mineralogical properties across various scales and conditions. This study investigates the geomechanical properties, specifically Young’s Modulus E, in core and aggregate limestone samples from Kansas through the investigation and assessment of mineralogical and petrophysical variables. The main objectives of this study were to: (1) assess E in relation to mineralogical, petrophysical, and scale-dependent variability in Kansas limestone and (2) develop predictive models for E. For these purposes, we collected 29 1-inch and 28 2-inch limestone samples and measured E using uniaxial experiments under dry and saturated conditions. We present regression-based models in combination with decision trees that allow for the estimation of E based on water content θ and quartz content for saturated limestone samples. By comprehensively examining the geomechanical, petrophysical, and mineralogical properties of Kansas limestone cores, this study facilitates their utilization and suitability as aggregates in concrete production and various construction applications for the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT).Item Open Access Evaluation of oral meloxicam in beef calves with neonatal calf diarrhea(2025) Neill, HannahObjective To examine behavioral and physiologic outcomes associated with the expression of pain in calves with naturally occurring neonatal calf diarrhea (NCD) and determine the impact of meloxicam administration on reducing these pain-related behaviors and outcomes. Methods Beef calves 3 to 30 days old with NCD and no comorbidities or prior NSAID or steroid administration were enrolled as clinical cases, and healthy beef calves were enrolled as controls. Clinical cases received either meloxicam (MEL group) or placebo (PLBO group) treatment; all controls received placebo. Over 7 time points, outcomes measured were substance P, prostaglandin E metabolite, mechanical nociceptive threshold, gait analysis, behavior analysis, physical examinations, and intake bloodwork. Results 20 calves with NCD and 8 healthy calves were enrolled. Prostaglandin E metabolite was significantly higher in calves with NCD than controls. Control calves were more reactive to pressure over the hip than calves with NCD, particularly those treated with meloxicam. Calves with NCD had shorter stride length and slower gait velocity compared to controls. Calves with NCD spent more time lying and more time lying with their head up compared to controls. Calves in the MEL group spent more time lying with their head down compared to PLBO calves. Conclusions Differences in mechanical nociceptive threshold, gait analysis, and lying behavior possibly indicated the presence of abdominal pain. Differences in head posture between MEL and PLBO calves suggest that calves treated with meloxicam may have been more comfortable. Clinical Relevance Calves with NCD may experience pain, and treating them with meloxicam may relieve that pain.Item Open Access Admixture compatibility and freeze-thaw resistance of concrete prepared using commercially produced limestone calcined clay cements(2025) Gara, AhmedAdmixture compatibility and fresh, hardened, and durability properties of mortars and concrete prepared using commercially produced limestone calcined clay cements (LC3s) were evaluated during this study. Incompatibility was evaluated for commercially available high range water reducers (HRWRs) and air entraining agents (AEAs) by studying the impact on flow diameters and initial setting time of mortars. Polyethylene-based HRWR was the least suited, whereas vinsol-based AEA was the most suited for use with LC3 cements. The high fineness of LC3 demanded a significantly higher dose of HRWR than control to achieve similar flow for mortars and slump and air content for concretes. Fresh properties (like slump, unit weight, and air content), mechanical properties (compressive and flexural strength) and durability properties (drying shrinkage and freeze-thaw resistance) were documented for LC3 concretes using standardized testing procedures. While all concrete mixtures produced satisfied the compressive and flexural strength requirements for paving concrete, concrete produced using one LC3 showed higher compressive and flexural strength than the control, whereas the concrete produced using another LC3 had lower compressive strength. Air-entrained LC3 concrete demonstrated adequate freeze-thaw resistance. Furthermore, LC3 concrete experienced lower drying shrinkage than the control. While LC3 concrete showed satisfactory mechanical and durability properties for paving application, the primary challenge was to achieve the desired fresh properties, like slump and air content.Item Open Access “I’m changing the story here": Emotional schema formation and communication between caregivers and children(2025) Schmechel, Lindey KayeEmotions are a universal human experience; however, much work remains to be done in terms of understanding the formation of emotions and beliefs related to them, and how one’s culture and/or identity may impact them. While research has been conducted regarding emotional regulation and emotional reactions, a deeper exploration into the processes regarding our core beliefs about emotions (i.e., emotional schemas) is necessary to bridge a gap in the existing literature. If caregivers are to make intentional choices about the messages they send children regarding emotions and emotional beliefs, something that has been found to have long- lasting impacts, it is important for researchers and those aiming to help them to better understand the process of creating emotional schema. In order to help caregivers create more effective and positive socialization experiences with their own children, it is imperative to first aid caregivers in distinguishing what they believe about emotions and why. To this end, this study used a qualitative narrative approach to (a) highlight commonly experienced socialization milestones around emotions across childhood, adolescence, and new parenthood and (b) provide recommendations for caregivers and professionals in helping fields (e.g., therapists, educators) based on these experiences. Guided by symbolic interactionism theory (Stryker, 2008) and utilizing a feminist framework (Biana, 2020), I conducted nine interviews with six caregivers of preschool-aged (3-5 years) children around the messages they received as children regarding emotions, how these shifted over time, and what meanings around emotions they would want their own children to have. Using thematic analysis to interpret these interviews (Braun & Clarke, 2022), the coding team identified five themes related to participants’ meaning-making around emotions: (a) Culture/Context, (b) Changes Over Time, (c) Intentionality, (d) Parenting as a Practice, and (e) Emotion-Specific. The findings of the interviews emphasize the important role that caregivers tend to play in their children's lives when it comes to the formation of emotional schema but also highlight how inherently embedded in our current culture these messages can be. Acknowledging the influence of both caregivers and societal norms on the formation of emotional schema is an important step in working to determine what fits for the child or not, to help parents more effectively communicate messages regarding emotions with their children, and to disrupt intergenerational patterns that have been repeated and caused harm for far too long.Item Open Access Supporting literacy development in secondary education: identifying and addressing student needs : a curriculum program to assist secondary educators(2025) Schrick, Ann M.This curriculum program is designed to help secondary teachers better support students who struggle with foundational literacy skills. It addresses a significant gap in secondary education, where many students face ongoing literacy challenges despite improvements in elementary reading instruction. The program provides teachers with practical, research-based tools and strategies for identifying and addressing reading difficulties through a Multi-Tiered Support Systems (MTSS) framework. Drawing from cognitive science and the Science of Reading, the program explains how the brain learns to read and offers evidence-based teaching methods, including structured literacy approaches. The content is delivered through an interactive online platform that includes assessment tools, lesson plans, and resources for differentiated instruction. The program emphasizes five key components of literacy: phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension, while incorporating both Scarborough's Reading Rope and Sedita's Writing Rope frameworks. This practical resource aims to empower secondary educators with the knowledge and tools they need to help struggling readers succeed, without requiring extensive additional training or resources.Item Open Access Modeling frameworks for resilience in socio-technical systems(2025) Okeukwu-Ogbonnaya, AdaezeIn the face of growing disaster frequency and severity, we aim to strengthen resilience across socio-technical systems. We develop several modeling frameworks to understand how communities prepare for and recover from disruptions that span interdependent infrastructures and communication channels. Although communities differ in structure and vulnerability, disasters uniformly strain both the physical networks and the social systems that support them. This dissertation examines resilience across two fronts: the operational resilience of communities within interdependent infrastructure systems and the communicative resilience of information flow within and between them. In the first part, we use a Markov Decision Process (MDP) framework to model failure-and-repair dynamics in binary hetero-functional graphs (HFGs) that couple power, water, and community infrastructures. We show that communities experiencing power outages respond more sensitively to prioritization strategies based on vulnerability or criticality, whereas those affected by water shortages are primarily influenced by service demand. To overcome the limits of binary HFGs, we introduce the Hetero-functional Agent-Based Infrastructure Toolkit (HABiT). HABiT enables fine-grained simulation of heterogeneous infrastructures and their interdependencies. We apply HABiT to a synthetic model of three communities with varying infrastructure access and social vulnerability. The simulation reproduces normal operations, disruptions, and recovery influenced by scarce resources, vehicle routing, and mobile repair crews. By incorporating stochasticity, we uncover variations in cascading failures and recovery patterns that deterministic models can miss. HABiT thus enables rapid evaluation of disruption scenarios and guides resource allocation and recovery planning under uncertainty. Recognizing that technical criteria alone may diverge from community priorities, we integrate community preferences into decision-making. We employ Large Language Models (LLMs) as proxy survey tools, generating simulated personas with diverse disaster experiences to obtain infrastructure-repair preferences. We aggregate these responses through a learning-to-rank algorithm, producing a total repair order that balances technical feasibility with social priorities. In the second part, we shift from infrastructure to information, examining how communication systems support or hinder resilience. Using survey data from three Midwest counties, we develop stochastic diffusion models that trace how information spreads through communities during both normal and disaster conditions. We integrate neighbors, online social networks, local news, cable news, and local government, mapping trust-based and interaction-based ties in each community. We find that trust in local government, frequent interaction with cable news, and social media strongly shape diffusion, with diffusion speed being independent of community size. We then extend this analysis to examine manipulation of information in online social networks. Using Twitter data from the 2016 United States elections, we analyze interactions between Russian troll tweets and public replies. We cluster historical user-interaction sequences and apply statistical tests to reveal diverse, unpredictable engagement behaviors. We find that trolls lacked a consistent strategy for provoking responses, although content with political figures generally attracted more attention.Item Open Access From TikTok to Truth Social: a data analysis of Gen Z’s platform preferences following the 2024 election(2025) Wagner, DawsonAs social media continues to shape political discourse, Generation Z has emerged as a distinct and influential demographic in U.S. elections. This study explores Gen Z’s social media platform usage during the 2024 presidential election and investigates how their political affiliation, gender, and opinions of platform owners relate to their usage habits and concern about misinformation. Using a quantitative approach, original survey data was collected from 188 Gen Z respondents at Kansas State University. Descriptive statistics and paired samples t-tests were conducted to compare usage frequency across platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, and Facebook. Independent samples t-tests and bivariate correlations were used to assess differences in usage patterns by vote choice, political ideology, and gender. Results show that TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, and YouTube were the most frequently used platforms, while Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), and emerging platforms like Truth Social and Threads had significantly lower engagement. Liberal-leaning participants reported lower favorability toward platform owners like Elon Musk and Donald Trump, while platform usage varied significantly across gender and political lines. These findings provide insight into the digital behaviors and values that guided Gen Z’s media choices in the 2024 election and contribute to a growing understanding of how this generation navigates political information in a fragmented and polarized online ecosystem.
