Understanding and predicting health outcomes of adults by examining adverse childhood experiences (ACE) is one tool available to healthcare professionals. This tool originated from the 1988 ACE study, and because of its findings, it has been widely implemented and utilized. This literature review investigates how practical and applicable those findings are to validate its current widespread practice. It is concluded that the original study is not comprehensive enough to justify its use in a significant way; however, this review discusses how it can be built upon and modernized to capture more demographics, validate its results to apply to more populations, and become a better predictive model.

Due to what is known as the “biologically desert fallacy” and the pervasive westernized ideal of wilderness that has influenced widespread American Conservation culture for millennia, urban areas have long been deemed as areas devoid of biodiversity. However, cities can contribute significantly to regional biodiversity and provide vital niches for wildlife, illuminating the growing awareness that cities are crucial to the future of conservation and combating the global biodiversity crisis. In terms of the biodiversity crisis, bats are a relevant species of concern. In many studies, different bat species have been broadly classified according to their ability to adapt to urban environments. There is evidence that urban areas can filter bat species based on traits and behavior, with many bats possessing traits that do not allow them to live in cities. The three broad categories are urban avoiders, urban adapters, or urban exploiters based upon where their abundance is highest along a gradient of urban intensity. A common example of an urban exploiter bat is a Mexican Free-tailed bat, which can thrive and rely on urban environments and it is found in the Phoenix Metropolitan area. Bats are important as even in urban environments they play vital ecological roles such as cactus pollination, insect management, and seed dispersal. Bat Crazy is a thesis project focused on urban enhancement and the field of urban biodiversity. The goals of this thesis are to observe how bio-conscious urban cities that work to promote species conservation can serve as a positive tool to promote biodiversity and foster community education and engagement for their urban environment.

When it comes to law practitioners in the United States, there is unspoken societal normality to view private practitioners with a certain gold standard. However, in many cases, when public servants are in the limelight, the societal gaze shifts to this second-hand standard, where many are considered lesser than or “not as good” as their private sector counterparts. When it comes down to it, the practitioners have passed the same/and or similar bar exam (for their respective states) and have gone through the same rigorous education to be where they are today. Both public and private sectors accomplish the same job that is in front of them, but one is paid significantly more, respected higher, and deemed by society the better option. However, clients can not afford the private sector due to privatized rates and are forced to “settle” with the public servant, then by proxy being deemed inadequate and the “loser” in the associated cases prematurely. This notion that there is a stereotype or bias towards public servants needs to be explored to see how pervasive this reality or myth truly is and to explore some of the possible sources for these perceptions.

This thesis addresses the global and national health landscape of disparities to provide insight into the social factors such as education, socioeconomic status, and environment that impact marginalized groups. A positive correlation between race, residency, and lower socioeconomic status among global and national landscapes was made with oral health disparities demonstrating poorer health outcomes among these groups. Through a multistep approach this thesis aimed to provide solutions to contribute to the efforts of developing effective policies and interventions that aim to promote oral health equity.

Every day people dream of becoming doctors; yet, while many know it is a rigorous process to wear a white coat and practice medicine, the true stories of the trenches of medical school are still often untold. This creative project gives medical students chance to have the spotlight, where they will share their own stories of both the ups and downs of their medical school experience and beyond. They were also given the opportunity to reflect and offer insight on if they would do it all over again or what they would change. This story-gathering of these future medical professionals will provide advice on how to get into medical school and tips on how to become a successful doctor, all while providing real-life stories about the people who save lives, and how it has affected them as an individual.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, telemedicine usage in America has experienced extreme peaks as a method of maintaining social distancing for medical staff and patients. While there have been numerous significant positive effects from increasing this practice, there are also significant risks to be explored. Patients and physicians have been navigating new technology, new protocols, and new dynamics at a high rate. Doctors using telemedicine are required to rely more heavily on their judgment with less data than usual to support their hypotheses. This results in a wide variety of potential complications that can be detrimental to patients and physicians alike. Though negative outcomes are not nearly the majority, it is clear that for telemedicine to function at its fullest capacity, the limitations of its technology must be defined and communicated. A survey was distributed to physicians currently practicing telemedicine to understand more about the usage increase in telemedicine and the incidence rates of telemedicine-related complications. The results showed that although the impact of telemedicine has been largely positive, there certainly are risks that must be considered and prepared for. Thus, it is the responsibility of healthcare systems to ensure that their policies are current and appropriate in proportion to their usage of telemedicine to better protect and prepare patients and doctors for this new frontier of medicine.