Digital Commons Network^™

Peripheral Arterial Disease Screening Of An Underserved High Risk Population, Laura Walter Triola

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Disparity in access to health care and preventive services places a heavier burden of morbidity on those with limited access and resources. Underserved populations with decreased access to appropriate health screening and therapeutic interventions often present with increased risks for peripheral arterial disease. Some patients with peripheral arterial disease are asymptomatic and may defer treatment while others present with occlusive disease requiring immediate therapy. Delaying diagnosis and treatment reduces quality of life and functional status. The prevalence of peripheral arterial disease has been extensively studied in the elderly population but the prevalence in the high-risk underserved population is unknown. The …

Approximate String Matching With Dynamic Programming And Suffix Trees, Leng Hui Keng

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The importance and the contribution of string matching algorithms to the modern society cannot be overstated. From basic search algorithms such as spell checking and data querying, to advanced algorithms such as DNA sequencing, trend analysis and signal processing, string matching algorithms form the foundation of many aspects in computing that have been pivotal in technological advancement.

In general, string matching algorithms can be divided into the categories of exact string matching and approximate string matching. We study each area and examine some of the well known algorithms. We probe into one of the most intriguing data structure in string …

Analysis Of Kinase Effects On Viral Replication Of The Papillomavirus, Joshua R. Raynes

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Papillomaviruses are a genera of small tumor viruses in the Papovaviridae family, whose lifecycle and replication ability is directed by epithelial differentiation. During latency, papillomavirus DNA replication occurs synchronously with the host cell's replication by the activation of the El protein. To elucidate the effects upon viral replication, this study utilized chemical inhibition of several kinases predicted to phosphorylate, and subsequently modify the activity of, the papillomavirus' E1 protein. The amount of DNA replicated was observed via autoradiography following DNA extraction and southern blotting of BPV-transformed C127 cells. Sample extracts from cells exposed to specific chemical inhibitors of PKC, CDK, …

P2pcompute - A Peer-To-Peer Computing Model, Jayant Mishra

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Peer-to-peer (P2P) networks consist of nodes which have both client and server capabilities and on which communication and data sharing is carried on directly between nodes, rather than being arbitrated by an intermediary node. The P2P architecture was popularized by file-sharing, one of the widely-used applications of the Internet. Many applications that are based on this architecture have been developed. It also provides an efficient platform to harness the computing power of a network of desktop computers. P2P computing power can help solve computationally complex problems that require powerful supercomputers. However, it has not been as widely used as the …

Perceptions Of School Performance Measures: A Study Of Principals In The United States And Head Teachers In The United Kingdom Using Q Methodology, Rene Velez

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Performance measures have been used throughout the business sector as a means to assess productivity, allocate resources, and increase profitability. More recently, they have been utilized to answer increasing calls for accountability in public education. Legislation has been passed in both the United Kingdom and the United States that implements performance measures as a means to measure student achievement and assess school performance. This study, conducted both in the United States and the United Kingdom, examined the perceptions of 15 primary and 15 elementary school leaders with regard to the transnational issue of school performance measures.

Q methodology was used …

Physical And Health Assessment Of A Population Of Raccoon (Procyon Lotor) In Northeastern Florida, Eric C. Munscher

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to study the potential negative effects that mesopredators have on their environment and to promote control of mesopredator populations. Overabundant predatory species such as the raccoons (Procyon lotor) and Virginia opossums (Didelphis virginiana) can have significant pernicious effects on populations of autochthonous prey species, particularly when super predators such as the red wolf (Canis rufus) and Florida panther (Felis concolor coryii) are absent. These overabundant species, coined as mesopredators, are often responsible for extreme levels of predation on prey species and/or their young. The mesopredator release hypothesis involves the "release" or increased density of …

Women Who Continue Hormone Replacement Therapy Despite Findings From The Women's Health Initiative, Catherine Margaret Greenblum

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Since the results of the Women's Health Initiative (WHI) study were published in 2002, millions of women and their healthcare practitioners have had to re-examine decisions about the use of hormone replacement therapy. This level one descriptive study explored the characteristics of menopausal women who could not tolerate estrogen withdrawal and continued taking hormone replacement therapy despite findings of risk published in the Women's Health Initiative. The sample included the medical records of 1,195 patients in a single-physician OB-GYN practice in northeast Florida. All records of women with a birth date in 1954 or prior and a visit to the …

On The Performance Evaluation Of High-Speed Transport Protocols, Bridget Hillyer

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

As high-speed networks with large bandwidth delay products (BDP) become more common, high-speed transport protocols must be developed that perform well in these contexts. TCP has limitations in high BDP networks. A number of high-speed TCP proposals have emerged, including BIC TCP, High Speed TCP, and H-TCP. XCP is an intraprotocol communication mechanism that promises even greater performance by providing explicit feedback from routers about congestion. It requires changes to routers and end hosts, though, whereas the other experimental protocols only require changes to an end host. We evaluated the performance ofXCP against BIC TCP, High Speed TCP, H-TCP, and …

Emotional Intelligence And Conflict Management Style, Laura Noelle Henderson

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The relationship between emotional intelligence (EI) and conflict management was investigated using 229 college students and 4 3 participants from organizational settings. A positive correlation was found between emotional intelligence scores and use of the integrating style of handling conflict with one's bosses, one's subordinates and one's coworkers. Of the five styles of handling conflict, emotional intelligence had the highest significant positive relationship with the integrating style; this style is generally considered to be the best approach to handling conflict. High levels of emotional intelligence were associated with high levels of socially desirable responding. Emotional intelligence scores decreased with age, …

National Board For Professional Teaching Standards Certification: Does It Impact Student Learning?, Patricia E. Falaney

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The present study measured student gains in learning using the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test pre and post-test mean scale scores in reading comprehension and math problem solving. The project involved classes of students in fourth and fifth grade in six north Florida counties. Thirty class sets of students were taught by a National Board Certified teacher, and a comparable set of thirty class sets of students of the same grade level and at the same school were taught by a teacher who was not National Board Certified. The analysis indicated if National Board Certified teachers produced a higher mean gain …

A Comparative Analysis Of Public Postsecondary Workforce Education Institutions In Florida, Georgia, And Kentucky, Christine Cothron

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This research was a descriptive cross-site case study of organizational structures of public workforce education institutions in the states of Florida, Georgia, and Kentucky. Organizational structures in public workforce education institutions can be found in four basic designs: technical centers, technical colleges, community colleges, and community and technical colleges. The purpose of this study was to investigate the concept of organizational structure in terms of the operation and effectiveness of workforce education institutions by studying four workforce institutions operating under differing arrangements.

This study investigated the following research questions:
1. Does organizational structure influence specific outcome factors for and between …

Assessing The Impact Of A Visual Arts Family-Focused Pre-Kindergarten Intervention, Gigi M. David

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the effect of a visual arts, family-focused school readiness intervention on the parental efficacy and level of family involvement of low-income families. A second, primary focus of the study was to test the potential of academically focused experiences in the visual arts to increase the basic concept development of young children. To increase accessibility, the intervention was conducted in a neighborhood library.

The research design for this descriptive study included qualitative and quantitative components. Data collection consisted of a non-randomized one group pre-test/posttest design from students on a standardized instrument and from primary caregivers using self-report questionnaires. …

The Kronecker Product, Bobbi Jo Broxson

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This paper presents a detailed discussion of the Kronecker product of matrices. It begins with the definition and some basic properties of the Kronecker product. Statements will be proven that reveal information concerning the eigenvalues, singular values, rank, trace, and determinant of the Kronecker product of two matrices. The Kronecker product will then be employed to solve linear matrix equations. An investigation of the commutativity of the Kronecker product will be carried out using permutation matrices. The Jordan - Canonical form of a Kronecker product will be examined. Variations such as the Kronecker sum and generalized Kronecker product will be …