This study explores the connections between public perceptions and regulation of mobile homes, and how this connection in turn represents and regulates the bodies residing within them. Applying various qualitative methods in participant and media research, I explored the material and social/symbolic aspects of mobile homes in and around East Baton Rouge Parish, LA, as well as media (primarily news) discussing mobile homes across the United States. I sought to explore these in relation to the normative and ideal expressions and image of the American home and its relationship to idealized American landscapes. Dialectics of mobility/rootedness and physical and social stability/instability as they relate to manufactured houses lead to a more thorough understanding of the material and social components of normative American landscapes. Moreover, this project contributes to larger conversations about whiteness in terms of class, space and mobility. I argue that by looking at the interplay between whiteness and mobility I am able to explore representations and experiences of ideal and othered landscapes within the United States. In so doing, I highlight the ironic immobility of mobile home residents, both in terms of the label mobile as misnomer and in terms of social mobility for residents, and explore how whiteness complicates social exclusion via mobility and idealized homes.

This research inquiry engages with residents from three Louisiana parishes who have already or are currently facing possible migration decisions. The research focuses on understanding the links among the influence and mobility of three factors: social relations (i.e., faith-based networks, civic organizations, family, cultural and heritage identities, etc.), inherent resilient practices, and place, including sense of and attachment to it. It will draw from those bodies of literature as well as environmental migration literature, while underscoring that decisions of migration are influenced by environmental factors, but ultimately shaped by a complexity of often simultaneous forces, including social, political-economic, and cultural processes. In conducting this research, I pay particular attention to the relations between the socio-environmental factors specific to the Louisiana coast that influence residents migration decisions in the geographically bounded places they currently reside in or may in the future. The following three questions are central to the research: (1) bearing in mind the multi-faceted causal contributing factors, including land loss, livelihood shifts, storm-related obstacles, and more, which are compelling residents to consider migration, how do residents see these factors affecting the decision-making processes? (2) With social relations deemed a key factor in resilient practices and sense of and attachment to place, what spatial and temporal roles do they play in migratory decision-making and; (3) what effects are these conjoining changes and processes of migration having on the residents themselves? Methods for this research project include visual and aural ethnographic-based methods, participant observation, document analysis, and semi-structured interviews. When placed within a broad framework of environmental migration, this empirical, interview-based research shows that residents migration decisions are always context-dependent and location-specific. The compounding changes taking place around them are affecting the residents also, and these are not discretely separate, but, rather, are interconnected processes. Here, alongside the uncertainty associated with fears surrounding future storms, there lies a persistently inescapable and unpredictable context within many interviewees reside. This discussion can contribute to a broader understanding of Louisiana residents experiences surrounding their perspectives on remaining, leaving or returning to their home location despite substantial challenges and discussions of relocation.

Every year, tropical cyclones (TCs) bring vast amounts of damage to coastal areas. Japan is an island country frequently struck by TCs. This study uses a modified strike model to understand the spatiotemporal distribution of TC strikes in Japan, and to identify places frequently hit by TCs. A principal component analysis and Kmeans clustering analysis are used to depict the most fundamental TC strike spatial variations in Japan. Time-lagged Spearman correlations are calculated to identify locations most sensitive to varying Oceanic Nino Index (ONI) phase. Results show the number of TCs striking Japan counts for 1/3 of all TCs in the northwestern Pacific (WP). TC strike frequencies in Japan decrease from south to north. All locations in Japan received at least 6 tropical storm strikes (wind ≥18 m/s) (TS). No typhoon strikes (wind ≥ 33 m/s) (TY) occurred in northeast Hokkaido. Major typhoon (wind ≥ 50 m/s) (MTY) strikes in the four main islands are rare. The earliest TS strikes happened in April, while no MTY strikes occur until June. TC strike frequencies in Japan are quite low before June and from November on. Japan is frequently struck by TCs between June and October, with peaks in August and September. Kyushu, Shikoku and west Honshu have relatively higher strike frequencies in July and August, while TC strike frequencies in southeast Honshu are usually higher in September and October. Locations in Kyushu are found to be sensitive to ONI phase, where the ONI is positively correlated to their annual TC strikes 2 years later.

Little research considers the vertebral column in relation to inter-populational variation and changes in economic lifestyle. Numerous studies have been conducted regarding the influence of activity-related stress on post-cranial elements such as the knees, hips and shoulders, but few studies have considered the vertebral column. This study examined the vertebral columns of two prehistoric skeletal populations. The Indian Knoll site, home to a population of early hunter-gatherers, is located in Ohio County, Kentucky along the Green River. Indian Knoll was first excavated in 1915 by C.B. Moore. The Moundville site, a chiefdom of early agriculturalists, is located in the Black Warrior River Valley in west-central Alabama and was first excavated by the Alabama State Museum of Natural History in 1929. Data were collected and analyzed based on type and location of pathologies to determine if economic lifestyle led to inter-populational differences in vertebral pathologies including osteoarthritic and osteophytic development and vertebral compression fractures (n=98 Indian Knoll and n=58 Moundville). Vertebrae were scored from 0-3 based on severity of osteoarthritic and osteophytic development. Results show that males had significantly higher frequency of osteoarthritis, osteophytosis and compression fractures than females in Indian Knoll, whereas there was no significant difference in frequencies of these pathologies between the sexes in Moundville. Results also show that Indian Knoll and Moundville were not significantly different from one another in frequency of both osteoarthritis and osteophytosis. However, there was a significant difference in compression fractures between both populations. Results indicate a relationship between economic lifestyle with compression fractures, but not with osteoarthritis and osteophytosis.

Northern Venezuela's Lower Maracaibo Basin (LMB) has the highest lightning flash rate (LFR) density in the world. The area receives approximately 200 flashes per km^2 annually. Local topography as well as local and global scale climate drivers have been shown to influence the frequency of the lightning storms, known as "Catatumbo Lightning". This research focuses on influences on LFR in the LMB by local and global sea surface temperatures and elements of local tropospheric air from 1996--2015. Sea surface temperature and tropospheric air data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are used in Spearman rank correlations to determine relationships to LFR data (Global Hydrology Resource Center) in the basin. Oceanic regions were analyzed, including; the Caribbean Sea, the Pacific Ocean (El Niño Region) and the Atlantic Ocean (Atlantic Meridional Mode region). Four tropospheric elements were analyzed, including temperature, relative humidity, u-wind velocity, and v-wind velocity. All elements were analyzed at all mandatory pressure levels (1000 mb -- 200 mb). The data sets are on a 2.5° x 2.5° gridded scale, with the exception of SST which is 1° x 1°. The data are analyzed on annual and seasonal temporal scales. Many statistically significant correlations were found between LFR and all variables included. Positive relationships were found between SST and LFR in the Caribbean Sea during the warmer seasons and negative relationships were found in the tropical Pacific on an annual scale. Many positive relationships were found between LFR and temperature, over the Caribbean and northern South America, mainly within the planetary boundary layer. There were also a large negative correlation extent between LFR and temperature over South America on the 200 mb level. Positive correlations were found between LFR and relative humidity over the Atlantic Ocean, east of Cuba during the warmer seasons and negative correlations were found during all seasons, mainly to the east of South America into the Atlantic Ocean. Positive relationships between LFR and u-wind were found over the Atlantic, Caribbean, and South America during all seasons at various pressure levels. Between June and November, negative correlations were found in the upper atmosphere to the east of the Lake Maracaibo Basin (LMB) extending into the Atlantic. Positive correlations were found over the LMB between 850 mb and 500 mb between December to May. Many more correlations were found. Influencing factors may include the Western Hemisphere Warm Pool, the El Niño Southern Oscillation, the low-level jets and shifting circulation patterns. Lightning is a dangerous atmospheric phenomenon and is responsible for hundreds of human deaths as well as for substantial economic loss annually. Further understanding of climate drivers responsible for the production of lightning will prove useful for the advancement of seasonal predictions, which can assist mitigation for protection of those living in lightning prone regions.

Research in Paynes Creek National Park, Belize provides insights about the ancient Maya and environmental changes over time. Sea-level rise has impacted coastal settlements worldwide. I study the marine sediment from five underwater salt works with large shell deposits. Marine sediment samples were exported under permit to the Archaeology Lab at Louisiana State University. The marine sediment samples were analyzed using loss-on ignition to tell the amount of organic matter. The samples also underwent microscopic analysis to identify the organic composition of the marine sediment. Using loss-on ignition and microscopic sorting, sea-level rise can be analyzed. A high percent of organic matter in conjunction with red mangrove (R. mangle) roots is indicative of mangrove peat. Mangrove peat is an indicator of actual sea-level rise because R. mangle has been shown to keep pace with the rise of sea level. By analyzing the marine sediment samples from these five sites, actual, as opposed to relative/ subsidence, sea-level rise can be assessed.

Understanding what constitutes proper communication is an important component of interaction for forensic science professionals. Using concepts from linguistic anthropology, this thesis recognizes patterns of discourse and register among individuals working within a forensic setting. Data collected from a survey distributed to members of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences and from interviews with forensic professionals working in the state of Louisiana were used to analyze individual perceptions of language use in professional settings. Results show that variation among individuals within the forensic disciplines affects speech. Other determinants of proper speech include audience and the space within which the communication occurs. As an individual transitions into and accumulates experience within the profession of forensic science, various patterns of language use can be observed. This thesis concludes that professionals exhibit metadiscourse awareness in forensic settings.

Assessing ancestry from skeletal remains provides important information to aid in personal identification. However, trying to specify ancestry for Native American and Asian populations in the United States is a current challenge in laboratory analyses. Both Native American and Asian populations are still often combined in research for a variety of reasons: small sample sizes, skeletal similarities and less emphasis in contemporary literature. Historically, Carlton Coon, in 1939, and Riesenfield, in 1956, refer to this combination of both Native American and Asian populations as Mongoloid, a term which is deemed by many as an offensive and inaccurate categorization of both populations by modern standards. The intent of this research is to analyze non-metric features of Native American and Asian crania to determine which traits, if any, may be used to differentiate between those two populations. Data analysis using frequency tables, chi-square and logistic regression methods show that some traits are statistically significant and are, therefore, linked to one population. By using these traits to help differentiate between Native American and Asian crania, ancestry may be identified more easily in forensic casework.

Tornadoes are a reoccurring severe weather hazard, with the highest rates globally occurring in the central United States. Despite their high frequency in the U.S., the scientific communitys disagreement of tornado activity during varying phases and intensities of the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) justifies a need for further research. In this study, tornado events from 1950 to 2014 in the U.S. east of the Rocky Mountains were investigated for seven phases of ENSO: strong, moderate, and weak El Niño/La Niña and the neutral phase. A seasonal Niño 3.4 index was used as the definition of ENSO. ENSO influences on tornado frequency, intensity, geographical distribution, and track area were tested using sophisticated mapping (i.e. GIS optimized hot spot analysis) and spatial statistics (i.e. average nearest neighbor and global Morans I). Results indicate that in spring, a Weak La Niña correlates with higher tornado intensity and stronger, long-lived tornadoes that shift eastward from the central U.S. as ENSO transitions from El Niño to La Niña. Summer has high tornado frequencies that do not vary dramatically across ENSO phases, with weak, short-lived tornadoes occurring in tornado outbreaks. Fall has similar tornado frequencies across six of the seven ENSO phases, apart from largely higher annual counts during a Strong La Niña phase. Winter exhibits more tornadoes that are stronger and longer-lived during a Moderate La Niña phase, with a northward expansion in tornado hot spots as ENSO transitions from El Niño to La Niña. In general, La Niña is most conducive for higher tornado counts and stronger, longer lived tornadoes.

Many hazard threats challenge the uninterrupted operation of the maritime transportation system across multiple temporal and spatial scales. Environmental hazard threats include hurricanes, storm surge, and sea-level rise. Resilience begins at the port, which provides the physical, economic, and social connection between sea and land transportation users. Ports function through port authorities, composed of people with decision-making abilities, which causes port resilience to be a complex process to understand. The paucity of metrics to quantify port resilience warrants other methods to study this place-specific topic. The goal of the Ports Resilience Index (PRI) project centered on the development of a qualitative resilience self-assessment tool for port authorities, using input of port practitioners. Using a participatory approach, I facilitated three rounds of expert consultation with forty-nine port practitioners across the Gulf of Mexico coast to develop the PRI. One round included pilot-testing the PRI with three port authorities. This dissertation uses qualitative methods of historical and comparative case study analyses, thematic coding of written hurricane plans, focus group discussion analyses, and participant evaluations to analyze the effectiveness of a participatory approach in engaging port stakeholders. The method to develop and complete the PRI might build capacity for resilience in port communities. Social interactions among port practitioners provided a look at the process of resilience that goes deeper than written hurricane plans but also identified challenges to resilience, including an emphasis on reactive, business-driven planning. Discussion facilitated by the PRI enhances anticipation by revealing collective perceptions of environmental risks and creating a non-competitive space to discuss risks. Completing the tool fosters on-going resilience through identification of opportunities to implement feasible resilient practices, including communication strategies and agency partnerships. The discussion-based assessment method of the PRI provides a connection between what researchers know about resilience and how we know it. A geographers perspective provides a solid foundation to study and understand the process of resilience at the human-environment interface. Resilient adaptability of ports to other hazards depends on flexibility in decision-making, which can be strengthened through participatory and place-based methods.