College of Arts & Humanities
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The collections in this community comprise faculty research works, as well as graduate theses and dissertations.
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Item Using AquaticHealth.net to Detect Emerging Trends in Aquatic Animal Health(MDPI, 2013-05-17) Lyon, Aidan; Mooney, Allan; Grossel, GeoffAquaticHealth.net is an open-source aquatic biosecurity intelligence application. By combining automated data collection and human analysis, AquaticHealth.net provides fast and accurate disease outbreak detection and forecasts, accompanied with nuanced explanations. The system has been online and open to the public since 1 January 2010, it has over 200 registered expert users around the world, and it typically publishes about seven daily reports and two weekly disease alerts. We document the major trends in aquatic animal health that the system has detected over these two years, and conclude with some forecasts for the future.Item The Measurement Problem from the Perspective of an Information-Theoretic Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics(MDPI, 2015-10-28) Bub, JeffreyThe aim of this paper is to consider the consequences of an information-theoretic interpretation of quantum mechanics for the measurement problem. The motivating idea of the interpretation is that the relation between quantum mechanics and the structure of information is analogous to the relation between special relativity and the structure of space-time. Insofar as quantum mechanics deals with a class of probabilistic correlations that includes correlations structurally different from classical correlations, the theory is about the structure of information: the possibilities for representing, manipulating, and communicating information in a genuinely indeterministic quantum world in which measurement outcomes are intrinsically random are different than we thought. Part of the measurement problem is deflated as a pseudo-problem on this view, and the theory has the resources to deal with the remaining part, given certain idealizations in the treatment of macrosystems.Item The Transnational Turn in African Literature of French Expression: Imagining Other Utopic Spaces in the Globalized Age(MDPI, 2016-05-18) Orlando, Valérie K.This article focuses on African literature published since 2000 by authors of French expression. While contemporary authors’ subjects are varied—ranging from climate change, human rights, to ethnic cleansing—they also imagine new “what ifs” and other utopic spaces and places that extend beyond postcolonial, Africa-as-victim paradigms. Literarily, authors such as Abdelaziz Belkhodja (Tunisia) and Abdourahman A. Waberi (Djibouti) have effectuated a transnational turn. In this literary transnational turn, Africa is open to new interpretations by the African author that are very different from the more essentialist-based, literary-philosophical movements such as Negritude and pan-Africanism; cornerstones of the postcolonial literary frameworks of the past. Belkhodja and Waberi offer original narratives for Africa that, while describing their countries as utopias, also traverse the very dystopic realities of our time.Item On Quantum Collapse as a Basis for the Second Law of Thermodynamics(MDPI, 2017-03-09) Kastner, Ruth E.It was first suggested by David Z. Albert that the existence of a real, physical non-unitary process (i.e., “collapse”) at the quantum level would yield a complete explanation for the Second Law of Thermodynamics (i.e., the increase in entropy over time). The contribution of such a process would be to provide a physical basis for the ontological indeterminacy needed to derive the irreversible Second Law against a backdrop of otherwise reversible, deterministic physical laws. An alternative understanding of the source of this possible quantum “collapse” or non-unitarity is presented herein, in terms of the Transactional Interpretation (TI). The present model provides a specific physical justification for Boltzmann’s often-criticized assumption of molecular randomness (Stosszahlansatz), thereby changing its status from an ad hoc postulate to a theoretically grounded result, without requiring any change to the basic quantum theory. In addition, it is argued that TI provides an elegant way of reconciling, via indeterministic collapse, the time-reversible Liouville evolution with the time-irreversible evolution inherent in so-called “master equations” that specify the changes in occupation of the various possible states in terms of the transition rates between them. The present model is contrasted with the Ghirardi–Rimini–Weber (GRW) “spontaneous collapse” theory previously suggested for this purpose by Albert.Item “Freedom in Their Hands is a Deadly Poison”: Print Culture, Legal Movements, and Slaveholding Resistance on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, 1850-61(2018) Chaires, Jacob Wayne; Bonner, Christopher; History; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The goal of this thesis is twofold: to explain the rise of slaveholding anxiety in relation to the growing free black question, as well as to articulate how slaveholders sought to regain their power. I argue that slaveholders on the Eastern Shore politically organized around ideas and concepts produced in newspapers. Slaveholders utilized new ideas about race and the law to organize, and call upon the General Assembly to enact tougher sanctions on free black mobility. Newspapers are not only a means by which to quote mine, but they are also living, breathing, cultural organisms. They both reflect slaveholding anxieties, as well as play into them. They both record local news events, as well as conspicuously pair those local stories with similar stories from other counties, states, and nations.Item Voices of the Cello: Speak, Sing, Play; An Aesthetic Examination of Style Periods in the Cello Repertoire and How They Relate to the Viability of Transcription(2019) Singer, Daniel Pecos; Music; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md)This dissertation was produced in conjunction with three cello recitals as part of a Performance Dissertation Project. Each recital focuses on music from style periods ranging from the Baroque to the twenty-first century and seeks to demonstrate how the aesthetic language of a composer or style period affects the viability of transcription. The recitals also highlight the unique qualities of the cello, both when playing music originally for another instrument and when performing music specifically written for it. The first recital includes music of Johann Sebastian Bach and Franz Schubert. Bach’s Suite No. 6 in D major, BWV 1012—performed on a five-string Baroque cello—shows how the spoken quality of the Baroque idiom in Bach’s music allows for transcription between instruments. The Sonata in A minor for Arpeggione and Piano, D. 821 by Schubert offers an opportunity to expose the vocal quality of the ello while exploring the limitations of transcription in this aesthetic language so inspired by song. The second recital focuses on transcriptions within the violin family of instruments by including a transcription of the Violin Sonata No. 1 in G major, Op. 78 by Johannes Brahms, as well as César Franck’s Sonata in A major for Violin and Piano. While the Franck only needs minor adjustments for the cello version (the piano part is untouched), the Brahms is transposed from G major to D major in order to be suitable for the cello. The final recital completes the arc by culminating in music written specifically for the cello—music that would be impossible to imagine on any other instrument. First the Sonata for Solo Cello, Op.8 by Zoltán Kodály develops the unique sound of scordatura by lowering the pitch of two lower strings by one half step (from C and G to B and F-sharp). Similarly, the Sonata for Solo Cello by György Ligeti is so cellistic in its conception that it is essentially unviable on any other instrument. Finally, Crest, Clutter, Clamor by Bradley S. Green was designed specifically for the physical characteristics of the cello, thus making it a quintessential example of cello specific writing. The first recital was performed on November 26, 2018, with Ruth Bright on the piano in Ulrich Recital Hall. The second recital took place on March 6, 2019 in the Gildenhorn Recital Hall with Andrew Welch and Alexei Ulitin on the piano. The final recital was completed on May 5, 2019 in Ulrich Recital Hall.Item The Clarinet Repertoire and Musical Aesthetic of William Thomas McKinley(2019) Morales, Melissa; DiLutis, Robert; Music; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md)The clarinet repertoire of William Thomas McKinley is varied and interesting, but seldom performed today. The few recordings that exist were created by an elite contingency of soloists and chamber musicians who were close friends and colleagues with McKinley. Outside their premieres and these few recordings, his music has seldom been performed. While many of his works are challenging and engaging, most were never published and thus remain inaccessible. Through several engraving projects and performances, this dissertation brings light to a corner of the clarinet repertoire seldom explored and heard today. For this project, I have completed performance editions of several McKinley works and presented them on recital. I plan to make the editions themselves available through later publication. This will make his music more accessible for performers and audiences alike. A recital on McKinley’s influences, including Aaron Copland, Mel Powell, Gunther Schuller, and Lukas Foss, took place on December 7, 2018 in Gildenhorn Recital Hall. The recital on April 19, 2019 in Leah Smith Recital Hall concentrated on McKinley’s development and career trajectory, featuring For One, Mostly Blues, Two Romances for clarinet, violin, and piano, and Intermezzos No. 1 & 2. The final recital took place on May 4, 2019 in Ulrich Recital Hall and featured what could be considered his greatest works and clarinet duos, Clarinet Duets Book 1, Clarinet Concerto No. 2, and Clarinet Sonata. The recitals were recorded on compact discs and are archived within the Digital Repository at the University of Maryland (DRUM).Item Cognitive testing of physical activity and acculturation questions in recent and long-term Latino immigrants(Springer Nature, 2010-08-13) Berrigan, David; Forsyth, Barbara H; Helba, Cynthia; Levin, Kerry; Norberg, Alicia; Willis, Gordon BWe ascertained the degree to which language (English versus Spanish), and residence time in the US influence responses to survey questions concerning two topics: self-reported acculturation status, and recent physical activity (PA). This topic is likely to be of general interest because of growing numbers of immigrants in countries worldwide. We carried out qualitative (cognitive) interviews of survey items on acculturation and physical activity on 27 Latino subjects from three groups: (a) In Spanish, of those of low residence time (less than five years living in the U.S.) (n = 9); (b) In Spanish, of those of high residence time (15 or more years in the U.S) (n = 9); and (c) in English, of those of high residence time (n = 9). There were very few language translation problems; general question design defects and socio-cultural challenges to survey responses were more common. Problems were found for both acculturation and PA questions, with distinct problem types for the two question areas. Residence time/language group was weakly associated with overall frequency of problems observed: low residence time/Spanish (86%), high residence time/Spanish (67%), and English speaking groups (62%). Standardized survey questions related to acculturation and physical activity present somewhat different cognitive challenges. For PA related questions, problems with such questions were similar regardless of subject residence time or language preference. For acculturation related questions, residence time/language or education level influenced responses to such questions. These observations should help in the interpretation of survey results for culturally diverse populations.Item Cell maps on the human genome(Springer Nature, 2019-03-20) Cherniak, Christopher; Rodriguez-Esteban, RaulWe have previously described evidence for a statistically significant, global, supra-chromosomal representation of the human body that appears to stretch over the entire genome. Here, we extend the genome mapping model, zooming down to the typical individual animal cell. Its cellular organization appears to be significantly mapped onto the human genome: Evidence is reported for a “cellunculus” — on the model of a homunculus, on the H. sapiens genome.Item DESPERATE MEASURES: RECORDING OF THE COMPLETE PIANO WORKS OF ROBERT MUCZYNSKI(2019) Samogray, Dmitry; Dedova, Larissa; Music; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The aim of this dissertation is to help assimilate the solo piano works of Robert Muczynski into the active 20th century piano repertoire, by providing pianists, musicologists, and listeners with the composer’s complete solo piano output on CD, for the first time. Of the fifteen compositions contained therein, only eight can be found on commercial CDs, with another two available on out-of-print LPs, and the last five never recorded on any recording medium. This circumstance diminishes Muczynski's piano music - the largest part of his catalogue - to a footnote in the American chapter of this instrument’s history. The ultimate goal is to have these recordings commercially released as a two-disk set. This release will follow an earlier disk of Muczynski's chamber music with piano, recorded for Brilliant Classics and released in the spring of 2017.