Doctor of Philosophy, Miami University, 2023, Educational Leadership

The lived experiences of African immigrants in the Nordics are rich and complex, but the literature available on this population is lacking. To counter the deficit thinking and oppressive literature available on Africans in Norway, this paper is created to uplift the African community by highlighting the important work of the first Pan-African youth organization in Norway Afrikan Youth in Norway (AYIN), our elders in the community, and other Africans in Norway while telling the stories through a critical lens. I used Africana Critical Theory to look at the growth, education, and identity formation of us, outside of the Eurocentric lens. This is drawn from critical thought and philosophical traditions rooted in the realities of continental and diasporan African history, culture, and struggles. This exploration includes interviews with former AYIN members, focusing on their experiences growing up and the influence the youth organization had and still has in their lives. This inquiry is a celebration of us, the population in Norway that have over generations worked towards going beyond tolerance by the Norwegian society, towards inclusion and acceptance.

Committee: Lisa Weems (Committee Chair); Brian Schultz (Committee Member); Joel Malin (Committee Member); Denise Baszile (Committee Member) Subjects: African Studies; Black History; Black Studies; Curricula; Education; Minority and Ethnic Groups; Multicultural Education; Pedagogy; Scandinavian Studies

Master of Science, The Ohio State University, 2024, Environment and Natural Resources

Traditional use of fire as a management tool can be beneficial for fire prone ecosystems and semi-natural landscapes such as heathlands. Recent shifts in fire regimes have exposed critical gaps in our understanding of fire behavior and fuel dynamics under varying management regimes. Changes in traditional land use may contribute to fuel accumulation and thereby increased wildfire risk. With heathland wildfires a growing concern, this project uses landscape scale fuel modeling and fire behavior analysis, as well as a participatory, expert knowledge-based approach to examine how wildfire risk could be altered by varying management practices in the Scottish Highlands and Western Norway. An analysis of stakeholder input revealed distinct patterns amongst stakeholder groups concerning their preferences for land management. Individuals from agricultural and sport shooting sectors favored open landscapes, continuing traditional practices, and encouraged mosaic burns. Others preferred a holistic approach including planting across riparian habitats, increasing natural woodland regeneration and expanding the forestry sector. While individuals from nature conservations revealed significant preference for natural habitat preservation and restoration, leading to a substantial expansion of forested areas and the promotion of specific woodland fuel types. Of the resulting preferences, we modeled two scenarios, representative of stakeholder desires for future heathland management in Scotland (holistic and rewilding approaches). These interventions were implemented into fire behavior prediction systems to quantify the potential variations in fire behavior and wildfire risk resulting from the different interventions and vegetation succession. Modeling showcased that holistically managed landscapes such as those that serve diverse purposes and incorporate different management approaches can lead to a reduction of wildfire risk in the short to medium term fully when compared to our re (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: G. Matt Davies (Committee Chair); Jo Peacock (Committee Member); Anais Roque Antonetty (Committee Member); Matthew Hamilton (Committee Co-Chair) Subjects: Ecology; Environmental Science; Social Research

Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, 1950, Sociology

Committee: Samuel H. Lowrie (Advisor) Subjects: Sociology

Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, 1948, Sociology

Committee: Samuel H. Lowrie (Advisor) Subjects: Sociology

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2020, EDU Teaching and Learning

“Buying the blueprints: Investing emotionally and materially in the icy ideologies of Disney's Frozen” uses a cultural studies framework to examine qualitative data collected from interviews with Norwegian children and families, observations of public engagement with the Frozen films both in Norway and at EPCOT's Norway pavilion, and narrative analysis of the Frozen films. Discussions of indigeneity, national/cultural identity, and gender as they are represented in Frozen are situated within the Disney Princess film tradition and examined as social blueprints (Dorfman, 1983) that contribute to audience's constructed schemas. Through these themes, I illuminate the Disney brand's reliance on audiences' emotional engagement with narratives to subdue critique and invite material investment in physical and digital merchandise. “Buying the blueprints” also offers suggestions for critical, creative engagement with the Frozen films, exploring play-based restorying (Wohlwend, 2009)(Thomas & Stornaiuolo, 2016) as a potential site for critical media literacy practice.

Committee: Caroline Clark (Advisor); Michelle Abate (Committee Member); Merrill Kaplan (Committee Member) Subjects: Early Childhood Education; Film Studies; Gender; Literacy; Literature; Mass Media; Motion Pictures; Multicultural Education; Scandinavian Studies

Master of Fine Arts, The Ohio State University, 2016, Theatre

Theatre is a liminal environment between performers and a live audience, and between the past, present and future. Theatre practitioners often bring to life old scripts that have graced the stage many times while highlighting the relevance of key themes and motifs in relation to a modern audience. The work of playwright Henrik Ibsen is produced worldwide because of its modern subjects, despite having been written in the late nineteenth century.Under the direction of Lesley Ferris, I designed the scenic environment for Rebecca Lenkiewicz's version of Henrik Ibsen's An Enemy of the People at The Ohio State University. I used a combination of sketches, digital modelling, and a physical white model to communicate my scenic design. By way of reducing, reusing, and recycling, I executed a sustainable scenic environment that complimented the themes of environmental awareness within the play without compromising the aesthetic of the design.

Committee: Brad Steinmetz M.F.A. (Advisor); Mary Tarantino M.F.A (Committee Member); Lesley Ferris PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Architectural; Architecture; Art History; Design; Environmental Education; Environmental Health; Environmental Management; Environmental Studies; Fine Arts; Gender; Gender Studies; Performing Arts; Scandinavian Studies; Theater; Theater History; Theater Studies; Womens Studies

Doctor of Musical Arts, The Ohio State University, 2015, Music

When we think of Norwegian composers, the name Edvard Grieg readily comes to mind, yet we can seldom name others, let alone more contemporary composers. This document explores the twentieth-century flute compositions of Norway, emphasizing Øistein Sommerfeldt, publications by Norsk Musikforlag, and several other Norwegian composers, including Johan Kvandal, Egil Hovland, Carl Gustav Sparre Olsen, and Finn Mortensen. A brief history of Norway with specific emphasis on the country's musical development is included to gain understanding of the events and characteristics that define Norway's musical voice. In addition to a chapter entirely focused on Norway's musical history in the twentieth century, we will examine Norwegian folk music and its resulting impact on several twentieth-century composers. Through an examination of twentieth-century flute music by Norwegian composers, we discover works outside our normal scope, yielding a more comprehensive and globally encompassing standard flute repertoire library.

Committee: Katherine Borst Jones (Advisor); Charles Atkinson (Committee Member); Russel Mikkelson (Committee Member); Karen Pierson (Committee Member) Subjects: Music

BA, Oberlin College, 1999, Geology

Peridotites, gabbros and basaltic volcanic rocks on the island of Leka, Norway in the western Scandinavian Caledonides compose a nearly complete ophiolite sequence. I examined samples from the harzburgite to dunite transition within the ultramafic tectonites of the Leka Ophiolite Complex. This rock sequence probably corresponds to the petrologic Moho, which is the true base of the oceanic crust and lies below the seismic Moho. I used universal stage techniques to determine the crystallographic preferred orientations (CPO) of olivine grains in both dunites from the base of the oceanic crust and residual harzburgites in the uppermost upper mantle. Olivine CPOs in other ophiolites are inferred to reflect patterns of asthenospheric flow at the spreading center and are used to determine the sense of shear, the relative orientation of the paleo-spreading center and the rate of spreading. The olivine CPOs in dunites and harzburgites from Leka do not match those measured in other, less deformed ophiolites like the Semail, Troodos, or Bay of Islands massifs. Therefore, I am able only to identify tentatively the orientation of the ridge at which these rocks formed. I was not able to determine a sense of shear in my samples due to inconsistent data. Several factors may account for the inconsistencies between the CPO in Leka peridotites and those from other well-known ophiolites: deformation of peridotites by shearing and/or folding, a shear sense reversal, complicated patterns at transform faults, and insufficiencies in the petrofabric methodology.

Committee: Steven Wojtal (Advisor) Subjects: Geology

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2013, History

This dissertation analyzes interactions between politicians, bureaucrats and diverse groups of women over the issue of maternity legislation in Norway between 1880 and 1940. It adds to a rich historiographic debate on welfare state development, women's roles in the creation of welfare policies, the Scandinavian model of welfare and the institutionalization of women's birth experiences. During the sixty years that this study encompasses, Norwegian maternity legislation underwent drastic and dynamic changes. From their initial implementation in 1892, maternity policies expanded in coverage, application and protections. This dissertation traces the history of this development along several lines, including local and national political processes and women's collective and individual influence. While women's access to maternity provisions steadily increased during this period, these achievements were fraught with struggles. Historical context shaped the types of arguments women could use to advance political debates about maternity. In many cases, these hindrances led to the creation of policies that promoted maternity legislation at the expense of certain groups of women's autonomy. Women did not act as a monolithic group when it came to maternity policies. Feminists, midwives and working women actively participated in the creation of Norwegian maternity policies and adapted them to fit their particular needs and interests. These groups of women transformed maternity leave from a mandatory, restrictive form of state control over women's reproduction to a benefit that all working women had a right to receive. In order to achieve more beneficial maternity policies, these groups of women embraced arguments that resonated with contemporary concerns. Late-nineteenth factory legislation had established maternity as an area of state intervention mainly because it fell in line with what other more industrialized countries were doing at the time. These early materni (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Birgitte Søland (Advisor); Robin Judd (Committee Member); Susan Hartmann (Committee Member) Subjects: European History; Gender Studies; Scandinavian Studies; Welfare; Womens Studies

MS, University of Cincinnati, 2002, Medicine : Interdisciplinary (Medical Science Scholars, Neuroscience)

Stress and aging are modulators of steroid receptor action in the hippocampus of rodents and humans. The glucocorticoid receptor (GR) is highly expressed in the hippocampus and shows marked alterations in function during aging. In particular, we have demonstrated age-related deficits in GR translocation from the cytosol to the nucleus as well as deficits in GR binding to DNA in the nucleus. The purpose of this study was to determine if these age-related decreases are specific to the GR or if another hippocampally expressed steroid receptor sharing structural and functional characteristics with GR, such as the androgen receptor (AR), was also affected. Additionally we wanted to determine if these age-related deficits would persist following an acute stressor. Thus we investigated cytosolic and nuclear protein levels and DNA binding of the GR and AR in the hippocampus in 3, 15, and 30-month Fisher 344 x Brown Norway F1 hybrid rats following 30 minutes of restraint stress. Additionally, we also investigated protein levels of 3 essential chaperone proteins (HSP-90, HSP-70, HSC-70) that are responsible for the proper activation and translocation of these receptors. We found no age-related deficits in translocation of the AR or GR in the control or stressed condition. We also found no age-related deficits in DNA binding for either receptor in the control or stress condition. Additionally, no age-related deficits were found for HSP-90, HSC-70 or HSP-70 protein levels in the cytosol or nucleus. Thus, we conclude that age-related deficits are population specific and we have uncovered a population of animals that exhibit normal steroid receptor function at all ages. This may help to determine protective molecular mechanisms responsible for successful aging.

Committee: Dr. James P. Herman (Advisor) Subjects: Biology, Neuroscience

Master of Arts, Miami University, 2005, Mass Communication

Myths affect children and adults because they help to construct our social worlds and identities. My thesis includes a theatrical play in three acts describing the Norwegian myth of the hulder (huldre plural) and the influences of gender and media in myths and society. Through my thesis analysis, I show how a particular Norwegian myth represents women and is a reflection of our patriarchy, commercialism, and capitalism and how the media influences children's imaginations and adult roles in society. Patriarchy has packaged women as products and has created myths out of women and fantasy; therefore, making women a form of fantasy that can be controlled and separated from reality and the public sphere. However, my theatrical play Lost in The Woods shows that it is possible to create new meanings for these roles in reading and writing against the grain; therefore, cross-cultural myths should be rewritten in a positive light.

Committee: Lisa McLaughlin (Advisor) Subjects:

Master of Science in Environmental Science, Cleveland State University, 2009, College of Science

The Norway rat (Rattus norvegicus) is found to inhabit many urbanized areas; needs to be controlled, given that it is a carrier of diseases and a source of economic damages. As harborage areas in suburbs, the rat prefers compost piles, cesspits, sewer systems, and basements that are near water. Norway rats prefer food sources such as waste disposal sites, unclean yards with trashcans, gardens, and slaughterhouses (Traweger and Slotta-Bachmayr 2004). The typical range for this species in an urban setting is 25-150 meters (27-164 yards). The research for this thesis was done in conjunction with the Cuyahoga County Board of Health (CCBH). Data was collected from residents who reported seeing a rat to CCBH. The resident's property and surrounding properties were then assessed for rat activity, harborage, and food sources. When rat activity was noted the property was baited using rodenticides, and re-baited until no further activity was noted. The number of baiting visits until no activity was noted was recorded for each location and was the main outcome variable of the study. The number of baiting visits was correlated to Census and parcel data utilizing Pearson, Kendall's tau, and Spearman's rho. Also Chi-squared analysis was conducted on the parcel data to determine similarities and differences with locations seeking county services for rat control and general demographic characteristics of the region. Finally, using the GIS system, densities were done to possibly show high concentration of rats to be used for future study sites.

Committee: W.B. Clapham PhD (Advisor); John Holcomb PhD (Committee Member); Mark Tumeo PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Biology; Ecology

MARCH, University of Cincinnati, 2012, Design, Architecture, Art and Planning: Architecture

Extreme arctic cultures are split into two very different lifestyle dynamics depending on the time of the year and the drastically different amounts of sunlight available. Winters are very introverted as a result of the extreme cold and twenty-four hours of darkness, while summers and the midnight sun are celebrated and very social. Because of this contrast, winters are often accompanied by Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), a type of depression directly related to the amount of sunlight a person receives. It is theorized by psychologist Dr. Norman E. Rosenthal and sociologist Marcel Mauss that by creating more social interactions in the winter and through the use of light therapy, the physical, mental, and emotional conditions of people affected by SAD could be more balanced year-round. Vardø is the terminus of the National Tourist Route project in Norway and a small arctic island that has fifty-six days of darkness each winter. Located in the center of Vardø, the project will house multipurpose rooms for meetings, clubs, pilates, etc.; a small theater; a community restaurant/cooking classroom; an interactive play area for children; a SAD retreat for light therapy; as well as an external sauna located on the water. These spaces will encourage interaction among people in the community year-round. A dynamic and unique exterior form incorporates both natural and artificial lighting, showcases tree and plant life that people this far north are unable to cultivate, and provides innovative social spaces and an atmosphere that will draw people inside. Both tourists and locals alike will be able to experience this unique interaction, which will, in turn, mitigate the effects of Seasonal Affective Disorder on the community.

Committee: John Eliot Hancock MARCH (Committee Chair); Jeffrey Tilman PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Architecture