Digital Commons Network^™

Characterizing Episodic Stream Acidification Using A Concentration-Duration-Frequency Methodology In Watersheds Of The Great Smoky Mountains National Park, John Leland Mauney Iii

Masters Theses

Episodic stream acidification occurs as storm events temporarily reduce acid neutralizing capacity and pH. Stream acidification is suspected to have damaging effects on the health of aquatic ecosystems and biota and is dependent on various watershed characteristics such as drainage area, elevation, slope, and surficial geology. Here, a stochastic modeling approach is applied to continuous pH data for multiple stream monitoring sites within the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in order to characterize episodic acidification responses during stormflows for different streams. The approach summarizes voluminous pH data recorded by water quality sondes at 15-minute intervals into concentration-duration-frequency relationships. Unique to …

The Effects Of Ultraviolet Radiation On Pigment Production, Growth, And Photochemical Efficiency In Allium Spp, Kristin Renee Abney

Masters Theses

In the 1970s, a push for research on the effects of ultraviolet (UV) radiation on food crops began. Since that time, multiple agricultural and horticultural crops have been studied with results showing that the morphological and physical reactions are species dependent. The purpose of these studies to determine how increasing UV radiation affects Allium fistulosum L. (scallion onions) and Allium tuberosum Rottl. (garlic chives), and how UV radiation affects 16 cultigens of A. fistulosum. The effects of UV radiation were determined by shoot height, fresh weight, carotenoid and chlorophyll pigment concentrations, and photochemical efficiency (F_v/F_m). …

Prehistoric Bone Grease Production In Wisconsin's Driftless Area: A Review Of The Evidence And Its Implications, Jonathan Douglas Baker

Masters Theses

The evidence for bone grease processing in Wisconsin's Driftless Area is addressed. A four-fold methodology for the identification of grease production is developed. This methodology includes an examination of: (1) bone fragment size, (2) fracture patterns, (3) overall taphonomy, and (4) archaeological context. The methodology is applied to the analysis of eight Driftless Area faunal assemblages and is also used to reevaluate previous accounts of grease production. Based upon the analysis, evidence for grease manufacture is present and ubiquitous at seven Archaic/Woodland sites. Evidence for grease production is also present in five Oneota assemblages from the La Crosse area.

Grease …

Design And Implementation Of A High Temperature Fully-Integrated Bcd-On-Soi Under Voltage Lock Out Circuit, Nora Dianne Bull

Masters Theses

As concern about the environment has grown in recent years, alternatives in the automotive industry have become an important topic for researchers. One alternative being considered is electric vehicles, which utilize electric motors. DC/AC inverters and DC/DC power converters control these electric motors. A logic circuit is needed to power these converters; however, the logic generators inherently operate at a voltage too low to power the motors. A device known as the gate driver is the interface between the logic generators (or microcontroller) and the power devices (power converter). The gate driver provides the power needed to drive the power …

A Business Process Modeling Approach For Evaluating A Government Contract Closeout Process, Clayton Jerrett Capizzi

Masters Theses

This thesis examines the practice of Business Process Modeling (BPM) in the field of contracts management. Government defense contractors are heavily burdened by contracts which have ended, but have not been finalized and closed. In order to keep good relations with organizations regulating government contracts, contractors have been forced to devise a strategy to address contract closeouts. Through utilization of BPM practices, an organization is able to not only model the flow of their contract closeout process, but simulate the performance of their process under varying conditions so that goals and deadlines may be met. Data was collected about a …

Hunter/Gatherer Foraging Adaptations During The Middle Archaic Period At Dust Cave, Alabama, Stephen Byrnes Carmody

Masters Theses

Dust Cave, located in northern Alabama, was occupied seasonally for approximately 7,000 years, spanning five cultural occupations beginning with the Late Paleoindian period (12,650-11,200 cal B.P.) and extending into the Benton period (6,500-5,600 cal B.P.) (Sherwood et al. 2004). Due to the exceptional preservational environments found within the cave, the well preserved organic materials recovered from the site have provided a better understanding of both cultural and economic aspects of prehistoric life including subsistence strategies and mobility.

My research focuses on these aspects of life during the Eva/Morrow Mountain (8,400-6,000 cal B.P.) and Benton (6,500-5,600 cal B.P.) components at Dust …

Development Of A Novel Lysophosphatidic Acid Activity Probe To Identify And Characterize New Protein Targets, Leah M. Cuthriell

Masters Theses

Lipids are categorized according to their biological function. Phospholipids, glycolipids, and cholesterol are bulk membrane lipids that offer structure and support to the cells and organelle membranes. Signaling lipids include diacylglycerol, phosphatidic acid, and lysophosphatidic acid (LPA). These are low abundance lipids that are active in various pathways. LPA acts through GPCR receptors to activate G or beta mediated stimulation of phospholipase C leading to phosphatidylinositol-(4,5)-bisphosphate hydrolysis, G_i mediated inhibition of adenyl cyclase, and G_i mediated stimulation of the mitogenic Ras- MAP kinase. To further elucidate the biological activity of LPA and potentially identify new LPA binding receptors, …

Export Of Carbon, Nutrients And Microbiological Indicators In Beaver Creek Watershed, Tennessee, Si Chen

Masters Theses

Storms are the most important events impacting stream water quality at the watershed-scale. With the goal to develop effective water resource management strategies for the impaired Beaver Creek Watershed in East Tennessee, the impacts of storm events on water quality were assessed by monitoring the intra-storm dynamics of the export of carbon, nutrients, and microbiological indicators (E. coli), which are parameters critical to water quality and ecological functions of the target watershed. The dynamics of carbon export from the Beaver Creek Watershed as represented by dissolved organic carbon revealed distinct carbon transport mechanisms as a function of storm …

Career Satisfaction Of Sales Professionals: The Role Of Personality, Nancy A. Foster

Masters Theses

According to P-E fit theory from a vocational psychology perspective (see Holland, 1985), individuals differ in their attitudes, values, beliefs and behaviors, which in turn affect their career choices and their satisfaction with those choices. These differences, collectively termed "personality," influence both work and life outcomes. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between personality traits and career satisfaction in a sample of sales professionals. An archival dataset was examined that included the "Big Five" and other work-related, narrow personality traits, as well as career satisfaction variables. All traits were significantly and positively related to career satisfaction …

In Vitro Analysis Of The Anti-Influenza Virus Activity Of Pomegranate Products And Fulvic Acid, Radha Ganapathy

Masters Theses

In traditional cuban medicine, pomegranate fruits have been used to treat acidosis, dysentery, microbial infections, diarrhoea, helminthiasis; haemorrhage and respiratory pathologies [Vuorela et al., 2003; Roig, 1974; Jimenez et al., 1979; Seoane, 1984].Pomegranates contain high levels of Polyphenolic compounds, which are largely responsible for the fruit’s antioxidant properties. A number of studies have demonstrated that polyphenolic complexes derived from other plants have antiviral effects, suggesting that antiviral activity may also reside in the polyphenol (PP) fraction of pomegranates.

The decay of organic matter generates an extremely heterogeneous mixture of organic molecules referred to as humic substances. They are sub-classified on …

Precision Farming Information Sources Used By Cotton Farmers, Amanda Renee Jenkins

Masters Theses

Precision farming entails production decisions that are made by obtaining data about soil and field traits. Information about yield and soil characteristics at different locations is collected and management strategies consistent with this information are designed. Information providers play a major role in helping farmers incorporate precision farming information into their decision-making processes. The main goal of this research is to add to the understanding of preferences of information sources in the context of precision farming. Data from cotton farmers in 11 Southeastern states were used to achieve this goal. Results from this study can be utilized by precision farming …

A Statistical Analysis Of Key Factors Influencing The Location Of Biomass-Using Facilities, Xu Liu

Masters Theses

Bioenergy and biofuels are emerging industries in the U.S. economy that will require statistical and economical analyses of woody biomass resources, supply chains, and other key factors that influence the siting of industrial facilities. This thesis develops models using logistic regression to improve the understanding of the key factors that influence the locations of existing wood-using bioenergy and biofuels plants, and other wood-using plants. The scope of the study is 13 Southeastern states.¹ Logistic regression models are developed at the state and regional levels. The resolution of the study is the ZIP Code tabulation area (ZCTA). There are 9,416 …

Anti-Judaic Religious Polemic And Apocalyptic Thought In The Disputation Of Majorca And Its Later Manuscript Tradition, Geoffrey Kyle Martin

Masters Theses

In this study, I first examine the Disputation of Majorca (1286) and analyze how its Christian disputant, Inghetto Contardo, blended apocalyptic thought and anti-Judaic discourse. Although other studies, most notably Ora Limor’s critical edition, have touched upon the nature of Inghetto’s arguments, none have discussed his clear implementation of intertwined anti-Judaic religious polemic and apocalyptic thought in a satisfactory manner. I place Inghetto in an apocalyptic milieu of the later thirteenth century that especially emphasizes the imminence of the Last Days. In effect, Inghetto’s employment of St. Jerome’s Daniel exegesis is perfectly suited to 1286, when Jews are most likely …

Vision-Based Reinforcement Learning Using A Consolidated Actor-Critic Model, Christopher Allen Niedzwiedz

Masters Theses

Vision-based machine learning agents are tasked with making decisions based on high-dimensional, noisy input, placing a heavy load on available resources. Moreover, observations typically provide only partial information with respect to the environment state, necessitating robust state inference by the agent. Reinforcement learning provides a framework for decision making with the goal of maximizing long-term reward. This thesis introduces a novel approach to vision-based reinforce- ment learning through the use of a consolidated actor-critic model (CACM). The approach takes advantage of artificial neural networks as non-linear function approximators and the reduced com- putational requirements of the CACM scheme to yield …

Ida Von Hahn-Hahn Und Isabelle Eberhardt. Ausbruch Aus Restriktionen – Auf Der Suche Nach Sich Selbst, Anja Katharina Seiler

Masters Theses

The following thesis compares the travelogue Orientalische Briefe by the German author Ida von Hahn-Hahn with the travel journals Mes Journaliers by the French author Isabelle Eberhardt, in the context of how each woman represents herself as a female traveler and author. The comparative study analyzes whether both authors in these texts deal with the issue of breaking out of social and cultural restrictions while traveling to the ‘Orient’. The overall question of my thesis concerns what kind of filters did they use to speak about the ‘cultural other’.

The personal backgrounds of Ida von Hahn-Hahn and Isabelle Eberhardt differ …

Impact Of Larger Diameter Strands On Aashto/Pci Bulb-Tees, Jayaprakash Vadivelu

Masters Theses

This thesis consists of the analytical study and the experimental investigation of larger diameter strands in AASHTO Type I girders. The main purpose of this study was to verify that the 2 inch minimum spacing recommended by ACI 318-08 and AASHTO (2008) can be used for 0.7 inch diameter strands by comparing various effects in girders using 0.7 and 0.6 inch diameter strands. Based on the parametric analysis it was concluded that by using 0.7 inch strands there was a considerable saving in the material. For example, an AASHTO BT-72 with 0.6 inch strand could be replaced with AASHTO BT-54 …

Architectural Sampling: The Integration And Manipulation Of Meaning, Jacob Stafford Thomas

Masters Theses

This thesis is an investigation into the appropriation and assimilation of meaning by examining the relationship between the technique and meaning of the musical sample and meaning and memory in architecture. As a previously recorded sound integrated into a new work, the sample has a dual identity as both detail and artifact. It is a detail of two or more wholes: an original condition and the new condition, and an artifact from the context of the work from which it was taken. In architectural design, each recognizable form and spatial arrangement is a sample from a prototype with its own …

A Study Of The Effects Of Applying Flue Gas Desulphurization Gypsum To Various Agronomic Crops, Jordan Ryan Combs

Masters Theses

Flue Gas Desulfurization (FGD) gypsum is a potential soil amendment for agricultural use in the state of Tennessee. FGD gypsum is a potential source of calcium and sulfur that may improve the soil both chemically and physically. FGD gypsum has the potential to raise pH, improve soil structure, increase infiltration rates, ameliorate subsoil acidity and improve crop yields. However, the addition of gypsum can also lower pH in some circumstances and cause magnesium and potassium losses in soil. In this study FGD gypsum was applied at a single rate to fields on thirteen farms located on the northern and southern …

Rezoning Decisions Associated With Housing Price, Land Use Plan, And Urban Sprawl: Empirical Estimations, Ji Young Kim

Masters Theses

Under the theme of ¨DRezoning Decisions Associated with Housing Price, Land Use Plan, and Urban Sprawl: Empirical Estimations¡¬, this thesis consists of two research with two related topics. The first part analyzes the dynamics of zoning structure and accommodates the neighborhood spillover effects associated with the real estate market, focusing particularly neighborhood spillover effects between rezoning of vacant parcels and housing price. It is found that the price of a house is positively influenced by the prices of other houses in its neighborhood but the rezoning status of a vacant parcel in a neighboring location plays an insignificant role in …

An Exploration Of Monophonic Instrument Classification Using Multi-Threaded Artificial Neural Networks, Marc Joseph Rubin

Masters Theses

The use of computers for automated music analysis could benefit several aspects of academia and industry, from psychological and music research, to intelligent music selection and music copyright investigation. In the following thesis, one of the first steps of automated musical analysis, i.e., monophonic instrument recognition, was explored. A multi-threaded artificial neural network was implemented and used as the classifier in order to utilize multi-core technology and allow for faster training. The parallelized batch-mode backpropagation algorithm used provided linear speedup, an improvement to the current literature. For the classification experiments, eleven different sets of instruments were used, starting with perceptively …

Influence Of Parenting Behavior On Behavioral And Psychological Associations Of Proactive And Reactive Aggression, Jamie Lee Rathert

Masters Theses

Child aggression is often categorized by the motivation behind the behavior, namely proactive and reactive aggression. Proactive aggression is goal oriented in nature whereas reactive aggression is in response to a perceived threat. There is some evidence to suggest that these subtypes are associated with distinct behavioral and psychological problems, with proactive aggression being associated with delinquency and reactive aggression being associated with depression. However, the behavioral and psychological correlates of these subtypes of aggression are not one to one relations and little research has examined the variables that impact these relations. This is a notable omission in the literature, …

An Investigation Into The Activities Of 1,2,3 & 1,2,4 Triazoles In Biological And Catalytic Systems, David John Schneider

Masters Theses

Selective epigenetic control of the cellular machinery is a grail of drug development. The balance between HAT’s and HDAC’s activities is one way the cell controls what, and at when during the cellular lifecycle a gene is expressed. Having the ability to lock chromatin down to the histone is a powerful tool for the treatment of disease states like cancer. Presented here is a preliminary exploration of the synthesis, and basic testing of novel compounds that use a triazole motif as a zinc binding group in an attempt to gain further selectivity in inhibition over HDAC’s.

Interest in the development …

Accelerated Ctis Using The Cell Processor, Thaddeus James Thompson

Masters Theses

The Computed Tomography Imaging Spectrometer (CTIS) is a device capable of simultaneously acquiring imagery from multiple bands of the electromagnetic spectrum. Due to the method of data collection from this system, a processing intensive reconstruction phase is required to resolve the image output. This paper evaluates a parallelized implementation of the Vose-Horton CTIS reconstruction algorithm using the Cell processor. In addition to demonstrating the feasibility of a mixed precision implementation, it is shown that use of the parallel processing capabilities of the Cell may provide a significant reduction in reconstruction time.

Applications Of Bret: The Detection And Visualization Of Protein Interactions And Intramolecular Conformational Changes, Lindsay Anne Staron

Masters Theses

Bioluminescence is a phenomenon in which chemical energy is converted into light energy. Here, the oxidation of a luciferin substrate, catalyzed by a luciferase enzyme, results in the emission of a photon. This biological process is exploited in a technology referred to as Bioluminescence Resonance Energy Transfer (BRET). As its name implies, BRET depends on a nonradiative energy transfer event that occurs between a donor luciferase and an acceptor fluorophore. Fusion of the donor and acceptor molecules to a protein(s) of-interest allows one to identify and monitor molecular events, such as protein interactions or hormone binding events, based solely on …

Novel Design Of A Portosystemic Shunt Occluder, Tommy Lee Washington

Masters Theses

In some breeds of dog, specifically the Yorkshire Terrier, a genetic defect exists that causes a hepatic portosystemic shunt to form. A hepatic portosystemic shunt is a vessel that when present cause blood to bypass the liver, which is responsible for filtering waste from the digestive system and moving it out of the body. An implantable polymeric device was constructed that would slowly occlude the hepatic portosystemic shunt and force the blood to stop flowing through the bypassing vessel and flow through the vessel to the liver over 3-4 months time.

The portosystemic shunt occluder device consist of three polyoxymethylene …

Integral Formulation Of The Compressible Flowfield In Solid Rocket Motors, Michel Henry Akiki

Masters Theses

In this thesis, a semi-analytical formulation is provided for the rotational, steady, inviscid, compressible motion in a solid rocket motor that is modeled as a slender porous chamber. The analysis overcomes some of the deficiencies encountered in previous work on the subject. The method that we employ consists of reducing the problem’s mass, momentum, energy, ideal gas, and isentropic relations into a single integral equation that can be solved numerically. Furthermore, Saint-Robert’s power law is used to link the pressure to the sidewall mass injection rate. At the outset, results are presented for the axisymmetric and planar porous chambers and …

Effect Of Selenium On Glucosinolate And Isothiocyanate Concentrations In Arabidopsis Thaliana And Rapid-Cycling Brassica Oleracea, Thomas Casey Barickman

Masters Theses

Brassica vegetables play a unique nutritional and sensory role in human diets around the world. Their characteristic flavors come from the break down products of glucosinolate (GS) compounds, a large group of nitrogen (N) and sulfur (S) containing glucosides. Glucosinolates are hydrolyzed by myrosinase to isothiocyanates (ITCs) which are biologically active. Mounting evidence of this process is of scientific interest due to the potential for high consumption of Brassica vegetables containing several GSs and their respective hydrolysis products that are associated with cancer chemoprevention. Glucosinolates are sulfur-rich hydrophilic, nonvolatile plant secondary metabolites; and. over the past few decades, their importance …

A 1700-Year History Of Fire And Vegetation In Pine Rocklands Of National Key Deer Refuge, Big Pine Key, Florida: Charcoal And Pollen Evidence From Key Deer Pond, Joshua Wright Albritton

Masters Theses

Key Deer Pond (24° 42' 29.50" N, 81° 22' 36.12" W; ca. 2 m elevation) is a small freshwater pond in a solution hole located within the pine rocklands of the National Key Deer Refuge on Big Pine Key, Florida. Overlapping sediment core sections and a surface grab sample from Key Deer Pond were subjected to pollen, microscopic charcoal, and loss-on-ignition analyses to investigate late-Holocene climate, fire occurrence, and vegetation-fire relationships in pine rockland ecosystems. Macroscopic charcoal from the uppermost meter of the profile was studied to provide a more detailed history of local fire occurrence.

The results from the …

A Study Of The Social And Political Implication Of Friedrich Schlegel’S ‘Comedy Of Freude’, Manjit Singh Bhatti

Masters Theses

Generally speaking, scholarship in the field of Germanistik has taken an interest in Friedrich Schlegel’s early publication, “Vom aesthetischen Werte der griechischen Komoedie” (1794), either because of its perceived influence on German Romantic Comedy [(Catholy 1982), (Kluge 1980), (Holl 1923), (Japp 1999)], or else because of its relevance as an example of Schlegel's still inchoate aesthetic philosophy [(Dierkes 1980), (Behrens 1984), (Schanze 1966), (Michel 1982), (Dannenberg 1993), (Mennemeier 1971)]. As a theory of comedy in its own right, Schlegel’s essay has garnered little attention, in part because of its supposed inapplicability to comedic praxis and at times utopian implications, in …

Arrowmont At Loghaven: Craft And Art, Karen Bailey

Masters Theses

This thesis provides the theoretic framework along with the research into site, program and precedent to support a design proposal for Arrowmont at Loghaven. The goal was to show that spatial organization that both differentiates and unites opposites can be a catalyst for personal and cultural development. The methodology of Christian Norberg-Schulz’s structure of space was used to explore the dynamic tension that enlivens architecture at various levels. The thesis explores the hypothesis that relationships that are created by a process of integration, can bring balance, and therefore health, to the individual, the community and the culture. The final design …