Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Digital Commons Network

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Articles 1 - 30 of 344

Full-Text Articles in Entire DC Network

Liberalism And The Dilemma Of Cultures, Ali Rezaie Jan 2014

Liberalism And The Dilemma Of Cultures, Ali Rezaie

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In this project, through a closer examination of the controversies over Monica Ali’s Brick Lane (2003), Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner (2003) and Azar Nafisi’s Reading Lolita in Tehran (2003), I seek to identify the elements of a defensible postcolonial vision. While postcolonialism is afflicted with many problematic assumptions, the exclusively liberal perspective which these authors seek to reaffirm in its place has its own plethora of defects. Ali, Hosseini and Nafisi merit a closer attention not only for their exposing some of the flawed views underlying postcolonialism but also for their demonstrating why an unqualified reversion to liberalism may …


Modeling Of Foam Flow In Porous Media For Subsurface Environmental Remediation, Seungjun Lee Jan 2014

Modeling Of Foam Flow In Porous Media For Subsurface Environmental Remediation, Seungjun Lee

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Among numerous foam applications in a wide range of disciplines, foam flow in porous media has been spotlighted for improved/enhanced oil recovery processes in petroleum-bearing geological formations and shallow subsurface in-situ NAPL (non-aqueous phase liquid) environmental remediation in contaminated soils and aquifers. In those applications, foams are known to reduce the mobility of gas phase by increasing effective gas viscosity and improve sweep efficiency by mitigating subsurface heterogeneity. This study investigates how surfactant/foam process works fundamentally for environmental remediation purpose by using MoC (Method of Characteristics) based foam modeling and simulation techniques. It consists of two main parts: Part 1, …


Essays On Incentives, Economic Conditions, And Educational Choices, Gregory Brian Upton Jr. Jan 2014

Essays On Incentives, Economic Conditions, And Educational Choices, Gregory Brian Upton Jr.

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In this dissertation, I offer two independent studies that each contribute to the literature on the college choices. The first paper examines the impact of Arizona’s merit based scholarship on college enrollment decisions. I find that both enrollment and tuition and fees increased at Arizona’s three large public institutions after the implementation of the AIMS scholarship. Enrollment effects are strongest among black and hispanic students. The second paper examines the impact of the recent 2009 housing crisis on college enrollment decisions. I find that large reductions in housing wealth lead to increases in public school enrollment and decreases in private …


Synthesis, Characterization, And Theoretical Studies Of Fluorescent Gumbos And Nanogumbos, Chengfei Lu Jan 2014

Synthesis, Characterization, And Theoretical Studies Of Fluorescent Gumbos And Nanogumbos, Chengfei Lu

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In this dissertation, novel fluorescent materials, which are referred to as a group of uniform materials based on organic salts (GUMBOS) are synthesized, characterized, and studied for different applications. GUMBOS are solid state organic salts having melting points from 25°C to 250°C. Similar to ionic liquids, GUMBOS are highly tunable and can be designed for specific applications by incorporating multiple-functions into a single ion pair by selection of cation-anion combinations. Chapter 2 is a discussion of the synthesis and characterization of a PEGylated IR786 GUMBOS. These GUMBOS are prepared by a two-step synthesis procedure followed by a facile anion exchange …


Leptin Regulates Nutrient Reward Via Galanin And Orexin Neurons, Amanda Laque Jan 2014

Leptin Regulates Nutrient Reward Via Galanin And Orexin Neurons, Amanda Laque

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Obesity has become a widespread concern to human health largely over the past three decades. It is thought that obesity is associated with the over consumption of calorically dense diets. The rewarding value of food is mediated through the mesolimbic dopamine system, though is less understood how appetitive control circuits relay information to existing reward circuitry. The adiposity signaling hormone, leptin, is a critical mediator of food intake and fat storage. Leptin signaling, via the long form of the leptin receptor (LepRb), is predominantly carried out within the hypothalamus. Leptin action specific to the lateral hypothalamus area (LHA) modulates reward …


The Contribution Of Fly Ash Components To Pcdd/F Formation, Phillip M. Potter Jan 2014

The Contribution Of Fly Ash Components To Pcdd/F Formation, Phillip M. Potter

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Chlorinated aromatics undergo surface-mediated reactions with metal oxides to form environmentally persistent free radicals (EPFRs) which can further react to produce polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs). Previous work using laboratory-made fly ash surrogates composed of transition metal oxides deposited on silica powder has confirmed their ability to mimic fly ash in the production of PCDD/Fs. However, little is known about the propensity of alumina and aluminosilicates to form PCDD/Fs. Cooperative catalysis between transition metals in the formation of PCDD/Fs has also seen little research. A fly ash sample containing both alumina and mullite, an aluminosilicate, was tested for PCDD/F formation …


Meso-Scale Analysis Of Deformation Induced Heating In Granular Metalized Explosives By Piston Supported Waves, Sunada Srinath Nagamani Chakravarthy Jan 2014

Meso-Scale Analysis Of Deformation Induced Heating In Granular Metalized Explosives By Piston Supported Waves, Sunada Srinath Nagamani Chakravarthy

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Shock sensitivity of heterogeneous explosive composites is dependent on the formation of hot-spots which are small regions of elevated temperatures within the material. Changes in the initial meso-structure (i.e. packing density, composition, particle size and shapes) of the explosives can significantly alter the hot-spot fields in the material and thereby affect its shock sensitivity. In this study, an explicit, 2D, Lagrangian finite and discrete element technique is used to numerically simulate the deformation induced heating of granular mixtures of explosive (HMX), and metal (Al) particles due to piston supported uniaxial deformation waves (400 ≤ Up ≤ 800 m/s). A number …


The Rules Of Engagement : What Formats, Moderators, And News Values Tell Us About The Content Of Electoral Debates, Jason Marc Turcotte Jan 2014

The Rules Of Engagement : What Formats, Moderators, And News Values Tell Us About The Content Of Electoral Debates, Jason Marc Turcotte

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

U.S. democracy is one of the most inclusive in the world, yet levels of political knowledge and engagement remain markedly low. Moreover, the news media’s coverage of elections inadequately informs and engages the public. These shortcomings underscore the importance of campaign events like electoral debates – events that are designed not only to educate the public but also to provide the public a more active role in the electoral process. Journalistic news norms and values wield tremendous power over campaign news agendas – including post-debate coverage – but the extent to which they influence debate agendas remains unclear. Given what …


Predictors Of National Broadcast And Cable Television News Coverage Of The Members Of The U.S. House Of Representatives, Jeremy Padgett Jan 2014

Predictors Of National Broadcast And Cable Television News Coverage Of The Members Of The U.S. House Of Representatives, Jeremy Padgett

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation examines how institutional, individual, and situational variables work to influence the volume of national broadcast and cable television news coverage members of the 109th, 110th, 111th, and 112th U.S. Houses of Representatives received. Analysis combines public data on House structure, member characteristics, member effort, and member circumstances with original computer-aided content analysis of the 38,430 transcripts in which members spoke and the 243,205 statements members made on ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC between January 3, 2005 and January 3, 2013, the full terms of these four congresses. The results presented in this dissertation yield important …


A Longitudinal Model Of Posttraumatic Stress And Posttraumatic Growth In Adults Affected By Hurricane Katrina, Mark Allen Schexnaildre Jan 2014

A Longitudinal Model Of Posttraumatic Stress And Posttraumatic Growth In Adults Affected By Hurricane Katrina, Mark Allen Schexnaildre

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Numerous studies have documented the negative psychological outcomes in individuals who experienced Hurricane Katrina. However, little is known about the long-term adjustment of hurricane-exposed individuals, especially with regard to positive outcomes, in the years after the storm. Specifically, few studies have measured posttraumatic growth (PTG), which refers to positive psychological change achieved by individuals who struggled with a traumatic experience. In their model of PTG, Tedeschi and Calhoun theorize that a certain level of trauma-related psychological distress and disruption is necessary for PTG to develop. The current study attempted to test the PTG model with a longitudinal path analysis of …


Self-Direction In Adult Learning: Effect Of Locus Of Control And Program Design On Learner Motivation And Training Utility, Nicole Cannonier Jan 2014

Self-Direction In Adult Learning: Effect Of Locus Of Control And Program Design On Learner Motivation And Training Utility, Nicole Cannonier

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Andragogy and self-directed learning (SDL) have long been touted as pillars of adult learning theory, but much of the existing SDL research has been predicated on adult learner assumptions that have gone largely untested. This dissertation developed a model based on adult learning and training literatures to assess the antecedents and outcomes of adults’ preference for SDL. The model was tested on a sample of 277 adults participating in job-related training through a continuing education program at a university in the southern United States. Based on social learning theory, locus of control (LOC) was proposed as a predictor of motivation …


Screening Ted: A Rhetorical Analysis Of The Intersections Of Rhetoric, Digital Media, And Pedagogy, Joseph Alan Watson Jan 2014

Screening Ted: A Rhetorical Analysis Of The Intersections Of Rhetoric, Digital Media, And Pedagogy, Joseph Alan Watson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The presence of expertise resonates across our daily lives. Experts are called upon to consult us about which candidate is ideal for office, which type of wood is the best choice for a carpentry project, which scientist has optimal data on the effects of air pollution, which speech teacher is the best one to take for proper credit hours, and more. An expert is typically conceived as an individual who knows more about a given topic and can create stronger identification than an average person. The struggle to achieve expert status is one that is fundamentally tied to power and …


Human Perception Of Piano Timbre Variations Relative To The Piano's Dynamic Range, Pitagoras Goncalves Jan 2014

Human Perception Of Piano Timbre Variations Relative To The Piano's Dynamic Range, Pitagoras Goncalves

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the perception of brightness as it relates to loudness variations in piano tone. A single note was recorded with multiple intensities and used as the stimuli. I normalized all recorded notes to be perceived with the same volume and with the same duration. Consequently, the tone quality could be evaluated without the influence of loudness. Professional musicians and music students were invited to participate. I designed a mechanical apparatus, which produced a measured amount of force applied to the piano key. This device was used to record an intensity range of approximately …


Exponentially Convergent Generalized Finite Element Method For Multi-Scale Problems, Xu Huang Jan 2014

Exponentially Convergent Generalized Finite Element Method For Multi-Scale Problems, Xu Huang

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The overall approach I take in the thesis falls into the category of multiscale finite element methods(MsFEM). I work to identify a new class of local approximation spaces with good approximation properties. This is carried out for the equilibrium problem of linear elasticity. The choice of local approximation spaces is motivated by the kolmogorov n-width. Part of my thesis work develops an estimate to show that it is possible to achieve a local approximation error of ô with respect to the energy norm using at most lnd+1 &frac1ô local basis functions. The global approximation error ôis controlled by the …


The Efficacy Of Interactive Journaling® In Reducing Alcohol Use And Alcohol-Related Problems Among Mandated College Student Drinkers, Steven Lee Proctor Jan 2014

The Efficacy Of Interactive Journaling® In Reducing Alcohol Use And Alcohol-Related Problems Among Mandated College Student Drinkers, Steven Lee Proctor

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Alcohol use and alcohol-related problems remain serious public health and safety concerns on United States college campuses. Considerable research has amassed to support the efficacy of the Alcohol Skills Training Program (ASTP), most notably the Brief Assessment and Screening Intervention for College Students, in reducing alcohol use and alcohol-related problems among mandated and voluntary college student drinkers. The most recent outgrowth of the ASTP curriculum, CHOICES About Alcohol: A Brief Alcohol Abuse Prevention Program, is a self-guided, experiential writing process which utilizes Interactive Journaling®. The present study sought to evaluate the efficacy of CHOICES in reducing alcohol use and alcohol-related …


Southern Sapphisms: Sexuality And Sociality In Literary Productions, 1974-1997, Jaime Cantrell Jan 2014

Southern Sapphisms: Sexuality And Sociality In Literary Productions, 1974-1997, Jaime Cantrell

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Southern Sapphisms: Sexuality and Sociality in Literary Productions, 1974-1997, considers how queer and feminist theories illuminate and complicate the intersections between canonical and obscure, queer and normative, and regional and national narratives in southern literary representations produced during a crucial but understudied period in the historical politicization of sexuality. The advent of New Southern Studies—and its nascent emphasis on sexuality as an organizing principle of social relations—has focused almost exclusively on midcentury texts from the Southern Renascence, largely neglecting post-1970 queer literatures. At the same time, despite these developments in southern studies, most scholarship in women’s and feminist studies continue …


Domestication And Foreignization Strategies In Translating Sinbad Of The Arabian Nights, Safa M. Elnaili Jan 2014

Domestication And Foreignization Strategies In Translating Sinbad Of The Arabian Nights, Safa M. Elnaili

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Over the centuries translation theories have provided strategies to help the translator overcome various linguistic and cultural obstacles that arise in any intercultural exchange between different languages and cultures. Idioms and culturally-bound expressions are among prominent translation problems, especially when the translation is between two completely different languages like Arabic and English which diverge both linguistically and culturally. The most debated translation strategies are Domestication and Foreignization. This research examines the use of these two strategies in four English translations of one of the world`s most famous cultural collections, The Arabian Nights. The study specifically investigates the use of domestication …


Applications Of Cfd Simulations On Studying The Multiphase Flow In Microfluidic Devices, Yuehao Li Jan 2014

Applications Of Cfd Simulations On Studying The Multiphase Flow In Microfluidic Devices, Yuehao Li

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Microfluidics has been extensively investigated as a unique platform to synthesize nanoparticles with desired properties, e.g., size and morphology. Compared to the conventional batch reactors, wet-chemical synthesis using continuous flow microfluidics provides better control over addition of reagents, heat and mass transfer, and reproducibility. Recently, millifluidics has emerged as an alternative since it offers similar control as microfluidics. With its dimensions scaled up to millimeter size, millifluidics saves fabrication efforts and potentially paves the way for industrial applications. Good designs and manipulations of microfluidic and millifluidic devices rely on solid understanding of fluid dynamics. Fluid flow plays an important role …


Recalled Bullying: Development Of A Measure To Identify Childhood Victims And Perpetrators By Adults, Melissa Munson Jan 2014

Recalled Bullying: Development Of A Measure To Identify Childhood Victims And Perpetrators By Adults, Melissa Munson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to develop a psychometrically sound measure of recalled childhood bullying by adults who were either victims or perpetrators of this behavior. In order to accomplish this, a measure of childhood bullying, the Peer Interactions in Primary School (PIPS) Questionnaire, was modified into a retrospective measure in order to quantify recollections of childhood bullying by adults. Specifically, the modified PIPS (PIPS-R) was created to identify adults who identified themselves as bullies, victims, or bully-victims during their childhood or who do not recall having been a bully or a victim. Eight hundred and twelve undergraduate college …


The Life And Work Of Mark Jacobi: Clarinet Repair In Philadelphia And The Influence Of Hans Moennig, John Anthony Coppa Jan 2014

The Life And Work Of Mark Jacobi: Clarinet Repair In Philadelphia And The Influence Of Hans Moennig, John Anthony Coppa

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Since the invention of the clarinet there have been instrument repairmen and technicians who have properly maintained and serviced those instruments. This project presents the life and work of Mark Jacobi, one of the most influential clarinet repair technicians of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. It connects the lineage of clarinet repair in Philadelphia and the life and traditions of Hans Moennig with the work currently being done in Mark Jacobi’s repair workshop. This document outlines the evolution of the clarinet barrel from its early incarnation as an attached extension of the mouthpiece section to its modern state as a …


Topics In Quantum Metrology, Control, And Communications, Bhaskar Roy Bardhan Jan 2014

Topics In Quantum Metrology, Control, And Communications, Bhaskar Roy Bardhan

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Noise present in an environment has significant impacts on a quantum system affecting properties like coherence, entanglement and other metrological features of a quantum state. In this dissertation, we address the effects of different types of noise that are present in a communication channel (or medium) and an interferometric setup, and analyze their effects in the contexts of preserving coherence and entanglement, phase sensitivity, and limits on rate of communication through noisy channels. We first consider quantum optical phase estimation in quantum metrology when phase fluctuations are introduced in the system by its interaction with a noisy environment. By considering …


Between Nihilism And Transcendence : Albert Camus' Dialogue With Nietzsche And Dostoevsky, Sean Derek Illing Jan 2014

Between Nihilism And Transcendence : Albert Camus' Dialogue With Nietzsche And Dostoevsky, Sean Derek Illing

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation examines the impact of Fyodor Dostoevsky and Friedrich Nietzsche on the development of Albert Camus’ political philosophy. The innovation of the present study is in the attempt to offer a substantive examination of Camus’ dialogue with Nietzsche and Dostoevsky. To the extent that connections between these writers have been discussed, it has been in the general context of modern thought or it has focused on overlapping literary themes. This project emphasizes the political dimensions of these connections. In addition to re-interpreting Camus’ political thought, the aim is to clarify Camus’ struggle with transcendence and to bring renewed attention …


Queer Emplotment: Lesbian Caretaking In North American Canonical Fiction From 1980 – 2011., Penelope Gay Dane Jan 2014

Queer Emplotment: Lesbian Caretaking In North American Canonical Fiction From 1980 – 2011., Penelope Gay Dane

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

My dissertation argues that lesbian caretaking in late 20th century and early 21th century North American fiction disrupts normative temporalities while repairing damage protagonists sustain from intra-familial trauma. Aligned with queer studies’ growing interest in representations of time, my project explores this paradox of lesbian representation. How can lesbian characters be both reparative and disruptive? Lesbian characters in Alice Walker’s The Color Purple (1980); Dorothy Allison’s Bastard Out of Carolina (1992); and Louise Erdrich’s Shadow Tag (2010) are reparative as they clean up the psychological and physical damage caused male violence, sexual abuse, and neglectful mothers. Yet their caregiving disrupts …


Coworking: Crafting Lives Alongside Each Other, Claire Frances Taylor Jan 2014

Coworking: Crafting Lives Alongside Each Other, Claire Frances Taylor

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Coworking is a form of alternative work arrangement in which communities of individuals share common office and work space but are most often employed by different employers within different fields/industries (Foertsch, 2011). Despite its growing prevalence, coworking is nearly absent from the organizational literature. The present mixed methods study introduced and defined the construct of extent of coworking. Extent of coworking is conceptually defined in this research as the degree to which an individual spends her/his workweek coworking. Qualitative literature review was conducted to establish this construct, and qualitative interview data provided support for the definition. Using job crafting and …


Electrochemical Reduction Of Co2 On Supported Cu2o Catalysts, Joel Niño Galvez Bugayong Jan 2014

Electrochemical Reduction Of Co2 On Supported Cu2o Catalysts, Joel Niño Galvez Bugayong

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

We have examined Cu-based catalyst materials that enable the conversion of CO2 to useful products such as fuels and chemical feedstocks by electrochemical reduction. In particular, we compared the electrocatalytic activity of supported Cu2O particles prepared using electrodeposition and wet chemical methods. The particles had cubic structure, ranging in size from 40 nm to 900 nm and consisting of low index planes. We observed significantly different product distribution on these catalysts compared to polycrystalline Cu, specifically for methane and ethylene formation. While Cu particles showed higher faradaic efficiency for methane formation compared to ethylene formation, we observed that Cu2O particles …


Differential Examination Of Disgust In Spider, Blood-Injection, And Contamination Fear: Self-Reported And Attention-Based Assessment Of Differences, Whitney Shay Jenkins Jan 2014

Differential Examination Of Disgust In Spider, Blood-Injection, And Contamination Fear: Self-Reported And Attention-Based Assessment Of Differences, Whitney Shay Jenkins

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Biased attention toward threat has been demonstrated across anxiety disorders as well as among nonclinical samples. While such studies have produced findings of attentional bias for fear-related or threatening stimuli, other types of emotionally laden stimuli have been ignored. This study sought to examine the experience and impact of disgust on individuals experiencing various types of anxiety, which may play a more significant role than fear in some disorders such as obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and some specific phobias. Specifically, this study examined self-reported disgust and attentional bias in relation to disgust and threatening stimuli. A modified dot-probe task with pictorial …


Painful Conversions: Reading And Writing Education Reform In Louisiana, Thomas George Sowders Jan 2014

Painful Conversions: Reading And Writing Education Reform In Louisiana, Thomas George Sowders

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In January 2013, the superintendent of a rural Louisiana school system initiated a plan to increase school choice in his district through the implementation of a new virtual magnet school and the conversion of an existing elementary school into a magnet school. Both plans were set into action in April 2013. This study uses performative writing to document the better part of a year spent engaged in this project as a contracted educational consultant. Melding William Blake’s theories of apocalypse and social metonymy with experimental modes of scholarly production as praxis, I theorize education reform as an interactive performance. By …


A Historical And Theoretical Look At The Percussion Ensemble Work 'October Mountain' By Alan Hovhaness, Joe Willie Moore Iii Jan 2014

A Historical And Theoretical Look At The Percussion Ensemble Work 'October Mountain' By Alan Hovhaness, Joe Willie Moore Iii

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

October Mountain (1942) is one of the standard early works written for the percussion ensemble. There has, however been little examination of the work theoretically. The primary focus of this document is to study the composer, Alan Hovhaness, the compositional structure of the piece, and to provide a guide for performance as well as a historical and theoretical reference for performers, conductors, and pedagogues in the field of percussion. My research included Hovhaness’s life, his compositional styles, and the influence of cultural identity on his compositions. This required the study of compositional techniques used by Hovhaness, particularly in his percussion …


Evaluation Of Triploid Oysters As A Tool To Assess Short- And Long-Term Seafood Contamination Of Oil Spill-Impacted Areas, Martin Scott Miles Jan 2014

Evaluation Of Triploid Oysters As A Tool To Assess Short- And Long-Term Seafood Contamination Of Oil Spill-Impacted Areas, Martin Scott Miles

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Many of the organic components of oil have the capacity to persist in the environment, bioaccumulate in tissues, and are toxic to surrounding organisms. Since the early 1970s, environmental assessment programs have utilized bivalves as monitoring tools of chemical contaminants in the marine environment. Because of their sedentary and filter-feeding habit (bioaccumulation), mussels and oysters been employed as sentinel organisms in environmental quality monitoring studies in coastal ecosystems. The use of indigenous (diploid) bivalves for biomonitoring water quality is limited during the summer months due to high stress and changes in biochemical composition induced by reproductive development. In this work …


Safer To Steal Than Score : Press Coverage Of Financial And Sexual Scandals, And Electoral Outcomes, Chance York Jan 2014

Safer To Steal Than Score : Press Coverage Of Financial And Sexual Scandals, And Electoral Outcomes, Chance York

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation examines communication processes surrounding political scandal. It demonstrates that scandal coverage is improperly calibrated to the severity of scandal accusations, with trivial but salacious sex scandals tending to receive inordinate amounts of press attention while deeper forms of financial corruption go unreported or underreported. Patterns of scandal coverage, in turn, result in real-world effects on public perceptions and electoral outcomes. Specifically, sex scandals generate such intense media scrutiny that accused officials often resign their offices rather than generate unwanted publicity. Financial scandals are often downplayed, resulting in little or no ramifications for the accused. Recognizing basic differences in …