In this dissertation, I explored students' expressed emotions as they worked on a problem-solving lab contextualizing the local lead poisoning issue in the city in which they attended college. I identified students' expressed emotions and their reasoning for expressing those emotions. I also looked at the change in students' emotions as they…

The primary question of my dissertation is, "Does venom possess a microbiome specific to it as an ecosystem, and why?" Given the limited amount of literature on venom microbiomes, I selected the California Cone Snail, "Californiconus californicus" as a proposed, wild model system for studying venom-microbe interactions in the…

This document presents the findings of a qualitative, grounded theory research study on pesticide worker safety education and learning. A variety of factors contribute to the reasons pesticide applicators are not always fully engaged in the education required for them to practice their work safely, resulting in long-term health and environmental…

In this dissertation, I explore how international migration and environmental pollution shape human capital accumulation and labor market outcomes.The first chapter examines how college enrollment and major choice decisions of young adults in migrant-sending countries are affected by the removal of international migration barriers. My…

Many goods carry health risks that have important impacts on demand and behavior. However, the risks are rarely transparent and, as a result, consumers often have incomplete knowledge of the health risks associated with many of their consumption decisions. This can lead to inefficient behavior. With that in mind, economists have studied the…

Lead is a neurotoxin that has been shown to have a long and lasting impact on the brains, bodies, and behaviors of those who are poisoned. It also has a greater presence in communities with high levels of poverty and minority populations. Compounded over time, the effects of lead poisoning, even at low levels of exposure, impact a child's…

Because pesticide exposure is a significant hazard to farmworkers in their working and living environments, basic pesticide toxicology is a topic for farmworker science education that has implications beyond scientific literacy to encompass farmworkers' safety and health. Migrant and seasonal farmworkers have been identified as an at-risk…