Howler monkeys (Alouatta sp.) use loud call vocalizations for both intra-group
and intergroup communication (Oliveira & Ades, 2004; Whitehead, 1989; da Cunha
& Byrne, 2006; Holzmann, 2012). While much of the literature focuses on the effect
of loud call vocalizations…

In this dissertation I examine the conceptions of opinion (<italic>doxa</italic>}), knowledge (<italic>gnosis</italic>), and understanding (<italic>episteme</italic>) that are presented by the character Socrates in Plato's <italic>Meno</italic> and <italic>Republic</italic>. A central claim I make, and one that sets my interpretation apart from…

This dissertation focuses on the specific strategies by which authors of the travel writing genre seize narrative agency. Throughout its centuries-long history, the genre of travel writing has offered multiple generations of authors a means by which to convey observations…

In numerous animal groups, individuals within the group often wish to impose
their preferences and guide the group in a certain direction. Conflicting preferences are
common in these situations and, in order to maintain group cohesion, collective decisionmaking
needs to…

This dissertation studies nonlinear panel data models with multiple fixed effects. The first two chapters consider the adaptability of estimation methods for nonlinear panel data models to multiple fixed effects. The first chapter investigates whether existing methods can be modified…

Network-based modeling of complex systems with emergent behavior is increasingly being employed across different disciplines. Much of the focus in such efforts has been on detailed, "microscopic" modeling, in which the dynamics is described in terms of the individual nodes…

In the United States, healthcare-associated infections are a huge source of medical and
economic burden. Annually, there are 1.7 million cases of healthcare-associated infection in
U.S. hospitals, which cause an estimated 98,987 deaths. Direct medical cost is also massive,
estimated…

In polyandrous species, sexual selection acts both before (precopulatory) and after
(postcopulatory) mating on traits that are important for reproductive success. Precopulatory traits
are important for mate acquisition and include weapons and ornaments. Postcopulatory traits
include components of sperm quantity…

The range of habitats a plant species is able to occupy is determined by a combination of
biotic and abiotic factors. Herbivores have long been predicted to play an important role in
species sorting by exaggerating the differences between soil…

Current global health interventions tend to focus on the “big 3” diseases:
malaria, AIDS, and tuberculosis. This focus has led to a dearth of funding for and
research into diseases that are also endemic in areas where the big 3…