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The Normative Structures Guiding Surfers' Perceptions About The Environment: An Exploratory Analysis Of Environmental Behavior And Environmental Concern, Jeffrey G. Toussaint

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to understand the relationship among surfers and their behaviors and concerns towards the environment. The sample included 94 respondents to a survey posted through the Eastern Surf Association (ESA) website. This study proposed that respondents who reported that surfing was their primary outdoor recreational activity would have more environmental behavior and environmental concern than respondents who did not have surfing as their primary outdoor recreational activity. Demographic and other causal factors, were used to assess the effects on the level of a surfer's environmental behavior and concern. From these hypotheses, several other relationships are …

The Effect Of A Predator Gradient On Female Oviposition Site Selection And Larval Performance, Josef F. Rieger

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

Patterns of larval amphibian distribution and abundance have historically been ascribed to direct predation. However, adult oviposition site selection is an alternative mechanism that can produce identical patterns and significantly influence community assembly. Although such behavioral habitat selection has been documented in several amphibian species whose larvae lack particular anti-predator defenses, the sensitivity of adult amphibians in detecting predator cues and avoiding these habitats has not yet been determined. If larval survivorship is greatly reduced in sites containing predatory fish, selection to detect and avoid habitats with low fish densities should be strong. I conducted three experiments which, (1) evaluated …

Sea Level Slopes And Volume Fluxes Produced By Atmosphere Forcing In Chesapeake Bay, David Salas Monreal

OES Theses and Dissertations

Year long time series at eight stations in the Chesapeake Bay and inner shelf were used to determine the relative influence of wind, barometric pressure and thermosteric effects on subtidal sea level variability and slopes. Special emphasis was placed on the lower Chesapeake Bay, where inverse barometric effects accounted for up to 33% of the subtidal sea level variations and thermosteric effects accounted for less than 1 % of the variations. The greatest thermosteric influence was noted at the southernmost, saltier and shallower location (Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel). Wind forcing accounted for most of this station's variability, making up more …

Effects Of Daily Oral Care With 0.12% Chlorhexidine Gluconate And A Standard Oral Care Protocol On The Development Of Nosocomial Pneumonia In Intubated Patients- A Pilot Study, Michelle Lynn Bopp

Dental Hygiene Theses & Dissertations

The initial purpose of the study was to determine if a difference existed between nosocomial pneumonia rates for intubated patients who received twice daily oral hygiene care with 0.12% chlorhexidine gluconate and those who received the standard oral care while in the critical care unit (CCU). Over seven months (February - August), participants were identified through screening and consent procedures, and randomized into one of two groups. Over the seven months, only five subjects were enrolled. While in the study, twice-daily oral hygiene care consisting of brushing the cheeks, teeth and endotracheal tube with a suctioning toothbrush using an FDA …

Histological Evaluation Of Cryopreserved Ovaries In Autologous Abdominal Transplant To NaïVe, Outbred, Cd1, Mice, Wentia Elissa Ford

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

This study showed that fresh and frozen-thawed mouse ovaries would maintain viable primordial or primary follicles post-autologous transplantation. Furthermore, with appropriate hormonal stimulation, these early-stage follicles were shown to develop into Graafian follicles containing a metaphase II antral ovum. Partially sliced ovaries were transplanted into the abdominal cavity of naive, outbred, CD1, white mice. Hormonal stimulation with pregnant mare serum gonadotropin (PMSG) and human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) one week after the autologous transplantation stimulated variable degrees of follicle and ovum maturation within the ovarian tissue. There were no major morphological differences observed between the four groups, three treatment and one …

Recruitment Variability Of Atlantic Croaker, Micropogonia Undulatus, With Observations On Environmental Factors, Sumalee Hoskin

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

I examined entrance patterns of Atlantic croaker, Micropogonias undulatus by comparing the abundance, length, age and growth rates, of larvae as they entered Oregon and Ocracoke Inlets, NC. These biological factors were then compared against environmental factors to assess the influence the physical environment has on recruitment variability. Entrance abundance into Oregon Inlet was an order of magnitude higher than abundance into Ocracoke Inlet. However, the difference was influenced by three peak events in Oregon Inlet and non-parametric tests found no difference in median abundance between the two inlets. Mean standard length was smaller at Oregon Inlet than Ocracoke Inlet …

In The Shadow Of The Fleet: The Development Of American Submarines Between The World Wars, Stephen J. Brady

History Theses & Dissertations

At the close of the First World War, American submarines compared most unfavorably with those of Germany and Great Britain. German submarines sank over 5000 ships, while the British submarine campaign, much less ambitious by design, was still credited with sinking 54 warships and 274 other vessels. Standing in stark contrast, American submarines did not sink a single ship. However, by the end of the Second World War, American submarines would sink over 1300 Japanese merchantmen and warships. This ultimate success was hard won, for attempts to modernize American submarine designs between the wars were continually stifled by advocates of …

An Examination Of The Effects Of The America Reads Tutoring Program And Tutor Training On The Attitude And Academic Achievement Of Urban At-Risk Minority Students, Tami C. Al-Hazza

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Education

The American educational system is struggling to identify methods of preventing early reading failure. Many schools are implementing tutoring intervention programs to supplement classroom instruction and to help meet the needs of struggling at-risk readers. Although there is substantial research on tutoring programs that employ professional teachers, there is a dearth of research on the effectiveness of non-professional volunteer tutoring programs.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of the America Reads tutoring program and tutor training on the reading achievement and reading attitude of urban, at-risk, K–3 minority students. The population sample was drawn from four …

Aligning Hierarchical Goals In An Organization: The Path From Training To Performance, Jeanette Denise Selby-Lucas

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Training is a multi-billion-dollar industry, and with the advent of the training technology revolution and the possibilities it provides to business and government, as well as to the academic community, it is important to determine if the money invested in training by these communities is providing the expected performance on the part of those who are trained. This can be done by quantitatively evaluating the relationship between training and performance.

This study extends the scholarly literature by developing the concept of organizational alignment through a combination of Human Performance Technology literature and traditional engineering methodologies. Organizational training and performance is …

Excimer Emission From Pulsed Microhollow Cathode Discharges, Mohamed Moselhy

Electrical & Computer Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Microhollow cathode discharges (MHCDs) are direct current, high-pressure, non-equilibrium gas discharges. Direct current MHCDs in xenon and argon have shown to emit excimer radiation at 172 and 127 nm, respectively. Internal efficiency of excimer emission in DC MHCD was measured to be 6–9% in xenon, and 1–6%, depending on the gas flow rate in argon. This high efficiency is due to the high rate of rare gas excitation by electrons accelerated in the cathode fall and to subsequent three-body collisions in the high-pressure gas. The excimer power scales linearly with current; however, due to the increasing size of the source …

Hegel, Nietzsche, And The Postmodern Teleological Impasse, Michael P. Tarpey

Institute for the Humanities Theses

Our postmodern intellectual climate is characterized by two apparently contradictory impulses. One seeks to undermine, unmask, and deflate the pretenses of philosophy as traditionally conceived. The result is a focus on difference, surfaces, and fragmentation. The competing impulse seeks to reconcile, integrate, and synthesize. The result is a holistic focus on deeper similarities behind surface differences. I argue that these competing impulses can be traced back to Hegel and Nietzsche. Thus, an understanding of the relationship between these two thinkers can illuminate our current postmodern condition. I argue that Nietzsche and Hegel are remarkably similar in their approach to many …

Fine Root Vitality And Its Application In A Minirhizotron Study Of A Co2 Enrichment In A Florida Scrub Oak Ecosystem, Brandon Todd Herbert

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

Minirhizotron images are assigned color codes to approximate the age of individual roots in situ. Triphenyl-tetrazolium chloride (TTC) has been used to measure the vitality of plant tissue by detecting dehydrogenase activity. TTC was used to assess the vitality of root tissue by color in a scrub oak ecosystem at Kennedy Space Center in central Florida. Roots were excavated, sorted into four color classes and stained with TTC. The product of the reduction of TTC by dehydrogenase enzyme, formazan, was extracted and its absorbance recorded using a spectrophotometer. A significant difference (p2 enrichment being conducted on a scrub oak …

Investigation Of Port Fuel Injector Spray Mass Distribution By Laser Induced Fluorescence, Tuba Bayraktar

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Modern internal combustion engines have stringent requirements for performance and reduced toxic emissions. The fuel delivery system, and particularly the fuel injectors, have a vital role in reducing unburned hydrocarbons (HC) and carbon monoxide (CO) in exhaust emission.

The main goal of this study is to map the spatial and temporal distribution of the spray from a low-pressure gasoline fuel injector. To attain this goal, three tasks were performed: (1) the experimental investigation of the spray oscillation as functions of operating pressure and injector timing, (2) the determination of the appropriate dye/fuel combinations for one particular experimental technique, and (3) …

Development Of An Efficient Ti:Sapphire Laser Transmitter For Atmospheric Ozone Lidar Measurements, Khaled A. Elsayed

Electrical & Computer Engineering Theses & Dissertations

The impetus of this work was to develop an all solid-state Ti:sapphire laser transmitter to replace the current dye lasers that could provide a potentially compact, robust, and highly reliable laser transmitter for differential absorption lidar measurements of atmospheric ozone. Two compact, high-energy pulsed, and injection-seeded Ti:sapphire lasers operating at a pulse repetition frequency of 30 Hz and wavelengths of 867 nm and 900 nm, with M² of 1.3, have been experimentally demonstrated and compared to model results. The Ti:sapphire lasers have shown the required output beam quality at maximum output pulse energy, 115 mJ at 867 nm and …

Time-Based Work-Family Conflict: Myth Or Reality?, Karyn H. Bernas

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

The present study examined a time-based model of work-family conflict for a sample of 176 working women with childcare responsibilities. Building on the work of Edwards and Rothbard (2000) and role theory, a model was proposed to test the specific variables that define time-based work-family conflict. Hierarchical regression analyses were used to test the proposed hypotheses. Contrary to assumptions about time-based conflict, the results suggest that role time has a very limited impact on work-family conflict. Variables that were related to role performance and satisfaction included traditional gender role expectations, family involvement, family instrumental support, leader-member exchange, role overload, and …

Creating Inclusive Organizations: Its Meaning And Measurement, Bryan Christopher Hayes

Psychology Theses & Dissertations

There is growing interest in the concept of inclusion by both scientists and practitioners. The goal of the current study was to bring empirical support to the organizational inclusion literature. Inclusion was defined as a psychosocial need and a model was developed specifying its relationship to antecedent and consequence variables. The measurement model was explored with a sample of responses from 418 undergraduate students (Study 1). The measurement model was confirmed and the structural model was assessed with a sample of responses from 609 employees of a medical center (Study 2). Results of structural equation modeling provided limited support for …

Facility Administrator Perceptions Of The External Environmental Constituencies Shaping Urban Advanced Technology Centers, Daniel Robert Smith

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Education

The purpose of this study was to develop a list of the most relevant external environmental constituencies and responses to those elements that should be used by facility administrators of urban advanced technology centers. A three-round Delphi research method was conducted to garner the perceptions of the panel participants. The President's Advisory Council and the Board of Directors of the National Coalition of Advanced Technology Centers were asked to nominate facility administrators of urban advanced technology centers to serve as expert panel participants. Of the 17 facility administrators nominated, nine agreed to participate and completed all three rounds of the …

Nearly Balanced And Resolvable Block Designs, Brian Henry Reck

Mathematics & Statistics Theses & Dissertations

One of the fundamental principles of experimental design is the separation of heterogeneous experimental units into subsets of more homogeneous units or blocks in order to isolate identifiable, unwanted, but unavoidable, variation in measurements made from the units. Given v treatments to compare, and having available b blocks of k experimental units each, the thoughtful statistician asks, “What is the optimal allocation of the treatments to the units?” This is the basic block design problem. Let n_ij be the number of times treatment i is used in block j and let N be the v x b matrix N …

A Conceptual Design Tool For Engineers: An Amalgamation Of Theory Of Constraints, Theory Of Inventive Problem Solving And Logic, Stephen R. Luke

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

This research creates a design methodology by synthesizing three different design tools, the Theory of Inventive Problem Solving (TRIZ), the Theory of Constraints (TOC) and Logic. The basic approach of this design method is to: (1) Reduce a design problem to a logic diagram, (2) Code the inputs and outputs to determine desirability and degree of control, (3) Identify the best inputs to manipulate in order to obtain the desired outputs and (4) Exploit innovative algorithms developed in TRIZ to find the best ways to manipulate the chosen inputs.

This research integrates and expands the methods of TRIZ and TOC. …

Long Term Residual Effects Of A Nutrient Addition On A Barrier Island Dune Ecosystem, Susan M. Heyel

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

In 1991, 150 m² were fertilized with nitrogen on three dunes on Hog Island, part of the Virginia Coast Reserve Long Term Ecological Research site, to examine plant community response to nitrogen addition. In 2000, the fertilized plots continued to exhibit a positive growth response. This study sampled the aboveground biomass, belowground biomass, and nutrient content of the experimental plots to examine the long- term patterns of nitrogen retention in a nitrogen limited system. Aboveground and belowground biomass was significantly greater in the fertilized plots than in the control plots. Aboveground biomass exhibited was significantly greater in control and …

Study Of Non-Equilibrium Electron Dynamics In Metals, Wael Mohamed Gomaa Ibrahim

Electrical & Computer Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Thermal phenomena, such as heat propagation, lattice melting, and ablation, are the result of energy deposition in metals. A fundamental understanding of the electron dynamics leading to these thermal phenomena would benefit many laser applications, such as laser deposition of thin films and laser processing.

In this work, thin metal films were prepared using the resistive heating evaporation technique. High dynamic range autocorrelators were constructed to characterize the different laser systems used in this study. The nonequilibrium electron dynamics in single layer gold films, multi-layer gold-vanadium, and gold-titanium films were studied. The time evolution of the electron temperature was monitored …

Involvement Of Platelet-Derived Growth Factor, Pdgf Receptor Signaling, Focal Adhesion Kinase And Src In Pressure-Induced Vascular Smooth Muscle Hypertrophy, Darian Clark Rice

Theses and Dissertations in Biomedical Sciences

Elevated blood pressure is associated with varying degrees of arterial remodeling. The mechanisms by which extracellular mechanical stress is converted into intracellular alterations in signal transduction and gene expression have yet to be fully elucidated. Our goal was to investigate the early events in the vascular smooth muscle response to acute hypertension and to identify mediators involved in long-term hypertensive remodeling.

In the acute phase of hypertension we targeted cell surface integrin and growth factor receptors thought to be mechanically sensitive. The signaling molecules FAK, Src and ERK-MAPK are known to be triggered by integrin engagement and growth factor receptor …

Leadership: The Missing Variable In The Economic Development Of Sub-Saharan Africa, Osei K. Bonsu

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

Contemporary economic theories, modernization and dependency, have overlooked the fact that the development process depends on the interaction of social factors. Specifically, the theories have ignored the role of leadership in analyzing economic development. This dissertation seeks to incorporate the importance of leadership into the analysis of development. It argues that sub-Saharan African countries have not developed economically because leaders in the region have been less than successful in establishing a culture conducive to industrialization. African leaders have failed to establish the high moral and scientific cultures necessary to promote economic progress. In place of those cultural attributes, the leaders …

Antecedents And Consequences Of Consumer Ethnocentrism Across Russia's Three Sub-Cultures, Shawn Thelen

Theses and Dissertations in Business Administration

Shimp and Sharma (1987) extended the concept of ethnocentrism to commercial products with the development of a 17-item Consumer Ethnocentrism Scale [CETSCALE]. Consumer ethnocentrism is the belief that purchasing imported products harms the local economy, increases unemployment, and is morally wrong (Skimp and Sharma 1987). Shimp and Sharma (1987) called for studies to determine antecedents to consumer ethnocentrism and to apply the CETSCALE across geographic and regional segments. This dissertation addresses a void in the literature by examining antecedents; Inglehart's Materialism/Post Materialism (1977) and Holbrook's Nostalgia (1993), and outcome variables; product purchase preference, of consumer ethnocentrism across sub-cultures postulated to …

East European Security Revisited: Institutions, Power, And Security, Blagovest Tashev

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

Drawing on the literatures on democratization, security studies, and small states this dissertation explores the relationship of small states' domestic and international institutionalization and their security. Small states have limited power not only to affect their environment but also to guarantee national security. Small states, it is hypothesized, enhance their security through the consolidation of domestic institutions and the accumulation of capacities provided by their participation in capacity-reach international institutions.

The dissertation tests the hypothesis by applying the comparative method to the post-communist states of Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, and Lithuania. The three case studies analyze the effects of domestic …

A Naturalistic Investigation Into The Processes And Themes Of Recovery From Chemical Dependency, Mark Thomas Blagen

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Education

The research on recovery from alcoholism and drug addiction has generally focused on the causes of relapse. Although the study of the causes of relapse is an important endeavor, the results of this focus remain inconclusive. Understanding the process and themes of recovery is also an important question that remains a significant challenge.

This study attempts to explain, in part, why it is that one person can have many relapse indicators and still thrive in recovery, while another who has multiple layers of support and opportunity for recovery, succumbs to addiction. This study also attempts to determine if and how …

Variables Associated With A Sense Of Classroom Community And Academic Persistence In An Urban Community College Online Setting, Cynthia P. Cadieux

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Education

No abstract provided.

A Study Of Professional Development School Program Graduates Through Their First Year As Urban School Teachers, Amy J. Vereen

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Education

This year-long study focused on three first-year teachers-in order to examine how they adjusted to their first year, how they developed professionally, and how they changed as teachers. Each teacher possessed characteristics for success in urban schools, and had completed a Professional Development School internship.

Using a self-efficacy test, interviews, and a teacher survey, the three teachers were measured throughout the academic year with regard to their level of readiness to teach, the impact of their Professional Development School training on their work as teachers, self-efficacy, and willingness to continue teaching in an urban setting.

Regarding their level of readiness …

Chipping Away At The Gendered Wall Implications For Being A Woman Sociologist, Rebecca Fogerty Grove

Sociology & Criminal Justice Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate what factors may determine productivity among sociology professors and factors that-affect promotions and hiring. In today's academic institutions, the gender barrier is considered nonexistent; however, the actual existence of the gender barrier is often apparent in departmental hiring decisions and university tenure policies. With knowledge of current, often subtle, biased standards, the gender barrier can begin to be dismantled to offer true equality for all potential and current professors. The data was collected in 2001, during the fall academic semester from departments of sociology (n=2 l 8). This thesis looks at the …

Spin Structure Functions Of The Deuteron, Junho Yun

Physics Theses & Dissertations

Inclusive double spin asymmetries have been measured in [special characters omitted] using the CLAS detector and a polarized [special characters omitted] target at. Jefferson Lab in 1998. The goal of these measurements is to study the spin structure of the deuteron and the neutron in the low Q² transition region between the real photon point, where the Gerasimov-Drell-Hearn (GDH) sum rule is expected to be satisfied, and the deep inelastic scattering limit. The analysis and the results for virtual photon asymmetries, the spin structure function [special characters omitted] and its first moment within a Q² range of 0.2 …