Digital Commons Network^™

The Effect Of Viscosity In Beveled Blade Coating, Salih Cebe

Masters Theses

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of several types of coating viscosity on coat weight development during the beveled blade coating process. In this study, the effects of several types of coating viscosity were experimentally investigated at the applicator roll, before and underneath the blade. Coating color viscosities were changed through two methods. The first method involved changing the temperature of coating color at constant carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) concentration, while the second method consisted of varying the CMC concentration in coating formula at constant coating temperature.

Coating viscosity had an influencing effect both on the amount of …

A Literature-Based Approach To Reading, Cheryl L. Lester

Masters Theses

This study examined the impact that a primarily literature-based reading program had on a third grade class in becoming proficient independent readers and writers. Using authentic literature, students were taught reading content, prioritized strategies, and necessary reading skills. Progress was assessed using theme tests, periodic reading surveys, skills surveys, observation checklists and forms, student portfolios, and standardized tests.; The results of this study indicated that a primarily literature-based approach inspired and motivated children to become successful readers and writers. The literature produced, emphasized, and enforced positive learning experiences. The assessments used demonstrated that the class became stronger and more enthusiastic …

The Slip Velocity Of Coating Formulations Using The High-Shear Viscometer, Daniel Parker Krieger

Masters Theses

When using a cup and bob viscometer, it has long been recognized that errors in the viscosity measurement can arise from several factors, among them slip. Slip is a phenomenon which occurs when there are slipping layers in the fluid under shear, causing a non-uniform velocity gradient to be generated across the gap of the cup and bob viscometer. A layer of fluid at either the bob or cup wall moves faster than the adjoining layers, causing the slipping effect. This leads to a low viscosity calculation for the fluid.

In this study, experiments with coating formulations were conducted using …

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: Risk Factors Among Hand Therapists, Suzanne Makielski

Masters Theses

The following study examined the presence of risk factors among hand therapists for developing carpal tunnel syndrome. A review of the literature indicated a significant relationship between the incidence of carpal tunnel syndrome and manual workers whose occupational tasks involve repetitive wrist and hand movements. Hand therapists were characterized as manual workers while possessing specialized knowledge and skill in the evaluation and treatment of hand and wrist disorders. Biomechanical analysis of various "hands on" techniques revealed repetitive wrist and hand movements including the use of force and increased risk for injury associated with carpal tunnel syndrome. In order to determine …

Evaluation And Implementation Of Asynchronous Adders, Poornima Y. Shankarreddy

Masters Theses

The need for high speed addition is forcing digital system designers to trade off space. If speed is used as a criterion to judge adders, then the Ripple Carry Adder (RCA) and the Carry Look Ahead Adders (CLAAD) will rank last and first respectively. On the other hand, if space is used, then the order of these two is reversed. The rest of the adders rank between these two. This paper evaluates RCA, CLAAD, and some of the other well documented adders. Both space and speed are used to judge the merits of each of these, and whether or not …

Development Of A Systematic Approach To The Implementation Of A Computer Integrated Manufacturing (Cim) For Small To Medium Sized Companies, G. Steven Trimmer

Masters Theses

CIM technology is rapidly becoming an essential part of businesses of all types and sizes. The impact on the culture of the enterprise is possibly of even greater complexity. Most existing implementations have been done by large businesses large teams of specialized talent.

The unique scope of this work is to simplify the implementation of CIM for small companies. The basic research derived from the WMU/IBM CIM Management Center, a fully functioning CIM facility that provides hands on experience to students and regional businesses.

The cultural references concerning CIM are derived from reading and personal experiences with industry while setting …

Osmotic Concentration Of Potato In Corn Syrup Solutions Prior To Freezing, Ying Chen

Masters Theses

The feasibility of osmotic concentration of potato strips in corn syrup solutions, and the use of osmotic concentration as an intermediate step in producing frozen, French fried potato, were demonstrated. Potato strips were contacted with 26 DE and 43 DE com syrup solutions at three solute concentrations (40, 50 and 60%, w/w) and three temperatures (20, 30 and 40°C) for six time intervals (0, 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 h). Moisture loss from, and solids gain by, potato were monitored. In general, moisture loss for 43 DE com syrup solutions was higher than that for 26 DE solutions. For …

White-Tailed Deer Crown Height Measurements And Mortality Profiles From The Hayes Site, Middle Tennessee, Renee Beauchamp

Masters Theses

Previous research at the Hays Site (40ML139) prompted an investigation of white-tailed deer remains from the site. An evaluation of aging techniques revealed that the dental crown height measurement technique is the best method for aging white-tailed deer. A regression formula was developed with a known-age sample of Mississippi white-tailed deer. An investigation of mortality profile interpretations defines attritional, living structure, and prime-dominated mortality profiles. The mortality profile interpretations are used to define seasonality and hunting intensity for the white-tailed deer from the Hayes site. A modified iterated age length key is used to derive mortality profiles. Results for hunting …

Primary Coolant Flow Characteristics As It Exits The Palisades Reactor, Gregory Alan Baustian

Masters Theses

During fuel cycles 9 and 10 at the Palisades Nuclear Power Plant, new phenomena have been observed using the resistance temperature devices installed in the reactor coolant piping. Oscillations in the temperature readings have been observed leading to the assumptions that there is temperature stratification of the coolant in the reactor hot-legs and that the coolant rotates as it leaves the reactor. In addition, oscillations in the bulk coolant flow within the two hot legs have been postulated. This report outlines work performed using computational fluid dynamics modelling which predict the observed and assumed flow characteristics of the Palisades reactor …

An Investigation Into The Development And Operation Of The Waldens Ridge Producers Cooperative, Daniel David Harstin

Masters Theses

This study compared and contrasted the perceptions of members of a vegetable marketing cooperative with those of other "knowledgeable" individuals on the factors they believed contributed to the cooperative's failure.

A case study approach was used to detail the history of the cooperative's development and to determine individual perceptions of the problems contributing to the failure. Participants were personally contacted by the author, and were interviewed using a semi-structured interview technique. Only open-ended questions were asked to determine these perceptions. When necessary, the author followed with questions to prompt participants to clarify or elaborate on responses. The interviews were recorded …

Thermodynamic Properties Of Mixtures Of Aqueous Solutions Of Hydrochloric Acid And Cadmium Chloride, Copper Chloride, Manganese Chloride, And Zinc Chloride, Samia A. Kosa

Masters Theses

The densities of mixtures of aqueous solutions of hydrochloric acid and cadmium chloride, copper chloride, manganese chloride, and zinc chloride have been measured at constant ionic strengths of 1.0 and 3.0 molal at 25 °C. In the case of HCl, CdCl₂ , and ZnCl₂ the literature data were refit using Pitzer' s apparent molal volume equation and the binary solution parameters were determined. Density data were used to determine the volume of mixing (∆V_m). Data from Torok and Berecs were combined with our data for the mixtures with CuCl₂ and MnCl₂. Pitzer's volume …

Complete Nucleotide Sequence Of Psti-L Fragment Of Tanapox Virus Genomic Dna, Sarah J. Neering

Masters Theses

Tanapox virus (TPV), of the genus Yatapoxvirus, is a human poxvirus that was originally isolated from the Tana River Valley in Kenya in 1962. TPV produces a mild disease characterized by a short febrile illness associated with one or more nodular skin lesions. Although there have been limited studies on TPV, other poxviruses such as vaccinia virus, have been extensively characterized and their genomic DNAs sequenced. In order to examine the molecular features of TPV, we have cloned approximately 17% of the genomic DNA. TPV DNA was digested with Pstl restriction endonuclease and cloned into pUC19. The Pst …

The Effects Of Public Commitment And Group Feedback Of Curbside Recycling, Iser Guillermo Deleón

Masters Theses

Several methods for increasing recycling have been presented in the psychology literature. However, many rely on incentive systems that require individual response monitoring for differential delivery of consequences, thus rendering them prohibitively expensive on a community-wide scale. This study examined the effects of three community interventions which may circumvent this limitation: public commitment, group feedback, and a combination of both. The Commitment Only intervention produced no substantial increase in recycling when superimposed upon a curbside recycling baseline. The Feedback Only intervention and the Combined Intervention produced increases of 25.47% and 40.00%, respectively. A no-intervention Control Group decreased in amount recycled …

An Empirical Investigation Of Quality And Productivity Management Practices In Manufacturing Firms, Kiran Vuppalapati

Masters Theses

A growing number of firms are implementing the concept of Just In Time (JlT) manufacturing and Total Quality Management (TQM). This research examines the impact of these management philosophies in manufacturing firms.

This research identifies a set of critical organizational variables necessary for a successful . implementation and the organizational problems faced during their implementation. The major object is to test the performance of firms implementing both JlT and TQM against firms implementing none of these philosophies. Results show that JIT-TQM firms are more customer focused and have better employee relations than traditional firms. This study also compares the performance …

The Concept Of The Theory Of Multiple Intelligences And An Interdisciplinary, Arts Inclusive Curriculum: A Model For Teaching Whose Time Has Come, Loraine W. Cowe

Masters Theses

The biting critique of A Nation at Risk (National Commission on Excellence in Education, 1983) caused the nation to initiate school reform on federal and state levels. The initiatives have defined education's deficiencies in meeting the needs of students in a rapidly changing, technological society. Students and the society in which they live are the premise and focus for the new outcome-based curriculum. Educators and researchers are developing new concepts of teaching that radically change the traditionally accepted curriculum, instructional delivery, and assessment. Many of these changes are based on new knowledge of the mind's capacity to function in several …

Assassination In Modern America: Political Participation Through A Gun Barrel?, Richard Grossenbacher

Masters Theses

Assassination has been a constant companion of the world's societies from the beginning of recorded history. Only relatively recently have social scientists begun empirical study of these acts in an effort to reveal any commonalties and possible predictive traits. Investigation of the assassination phenomenon assumed a special urgency in America as violence seemed to escalate in the 1960s, which resulted in some notable research.

The present research collected data of presidential and non-presidential assassinations and attempts that occurred from 1969 through 1992 and compared the findings with the results of earlier studies.

The data indicate that presidential assaults increased in …

Continuous Quality Improvement And Music Therapy: An Analysis Of Importance, Training, Familiarity, And Involvement, Jane E. Mclaren

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

The Effect Of Computer-Assisted Instruction On The Development Of Diagnostic Reasoning Skills Among Occupational Therapy Students, Judith Lynn Freeman

Masters Theses

Diagnostic reasoning is an essential feature of the occupational therapy treatment process. Acquisition of diagnostic reasoning skills is difficult for students, however, because of paradoxical developmental limitations faced during transition from classroom to clinical learning environments. Educators in pre-professional occupational therapy curriculums are searching for educational methods to prepare students for diagnostic reasoning tasks inherent in practice.

This experimental study compared a computer-simulated diagnostic reasoning activity with a more traditional case study reviewing activity in terms of effect on accuracy of problem identification among occupational therapy students. Results found no significant difference between the effect of computer-assisted instruction and case …

A Study Of Aquifer Sensitivity And Vulnerability In Kalamazoo County, Michigan Based On Hydrogeologic And Agricultural Factors, Steven Douglas Chidester

Masters Theses

Groundwater in Kalamazoo County, Michigan has been impacted by human activities. This study presents a statistical method for predicting aquifer sensitivity/vulnerability within a glacio-hydrogeologic system.

Computerized data including 3620 water well records with partial chemical analyses, soil surveys, land use maps, and hydrogeologic reports were used to quantify aquifer parameters, nitrate-N contaminant concentrations, soil factors, and agricultural practices. Statistical analyses included simple t-tests , correlation, ANOV A, and multiple regression analyses.

The results indicate that there are statistically significant relationships between nitrate-N concentrations and depth of well submergence, well depth, clay thickness, partial clay thickness, land use, and soil slope. …

An Experimental Study Into The Role Of Routing Flexibility In The Justification Of Advanced Manufacturing Systems, Sanjay Pathak

Masters Theses

Increased competition in manufacturing has focused attention on advanced technologies. These costly technologies lead to difficulty in purchase justification using traditional methods. New methods quantify attributes relating to the flexibility of advanced systems. One such attribute is routing flexibility.

This thesis presents results of experiments into evaluation of routing flexibility. The performance of conventional dedicated machinery when compared with that of machines having routing flexibility indicates an advantage of flexible machinery. The thesis indicates a procedure for evaluation of different flexibilities and their comparison with conventional machinery in reality.

An empirical formula is developed that helps in quantifying routing flexibility …

Design And Development Of A Heterogeneous Parallel Computing System, Eruch R. Rustomji

Masters Theses

A parallel and distributed processing environment can be defined as one where a set of workstations is configured in a certain topology (such as completely connected linear chain) to simulate the working of a particular parallel architecture. Such an environment provides an extremely useful means of experimenting with parallel algorithms, without the use of expensive dedicated parallel machines.

Several parallel and distributed processing environments exist, such as Parallel Virtual Machine, The Condor System and the Reactive Kernel System/ Cosmic Environment System. Each of these systems has some unique features and limitations. Other systems include p4, Hermes, Linda and Express.

This …

The Biomechanical Analysis Of Two Types Of Place Kicks: The Toe And Instep Kicks, Kaylynn Albers

Masters Theses

This study described the biomechanical differences between two styles of the place kick; the toe kick and instep kick. The biomechanical variables included joint angles, velocities, and displacements. Five high school age subjects kicked five trials of the toe kick and five trials of the instep kick at both 20 and 35 yards. The place kicks were filmed with a high speed camera, digitized and analyzed with peak 4.2 computer software.

The findings for joint angles were consistent with those found in the literature. The velocity for the kicking foot and the ball were lower in this study than found …

Separation Of Copper And Iron In Natural Waters By Solid-Phase Extraction, Charles Bui

Masters Theses

A separation scheme has been developed by utilizing Solid-Phase Extraction cartridges in order to isolate and characterize the charge of metals and their complexes in natural waters. These species can be analyzed by Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (AAS), Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP), and Ultraviolet-Visible Spectrophotometry (UVVIS).

This separation scheme would permit the determination of the concentration of metals, as well as providing information about the forms in which the metals exist, e.g., charge of metallic complexes.

Synthetic metal complexes were prepared in the laboratory in order to study the separation scheme as well as trying to understand the binding stability of …

Effects Of Cocaine On Fixed-Ratio Responding Of Rats: Modulation By Required Response Force, Malath Makhay

Masters Theses

The effects of acute cocaine administrations (5. 6 to 32 mg/kg) were determined in rats responding under a multiple fixed-ratio 15 fixed-ratio 15 schedule of food delivery. The minimum response effort required in one schedule component was 25 g, whereas in the other component it was 200 g. Cocaine produced generally dose-dependent decreases in rate of responding and increases in pre-ratio pause times under each component. There was, however, a significant interaction between force and drug dose, and the magnitude of drug effects were larger in the component requiring 200 g for lever operation. Although a number of other parameters …

Karma In Theodicy, Joji Watanabe

Masters Theses

The study of religion explicates fascinating aspects of human history. From the past through the present to future times, in every area of human history a person's religious views provide his or her specific world view: How to consider the meaning of life or world. In a sense, suffering has come up as one of major problems in religion. This is because how a group of people finds release from suffering explains the specific aspect of each religious tradition.

With the above as a basis, theodicy was set not as God's justice in the Judeo-Christian tradition but as a broad …

Insect/Plant Interactions Among The Pyralid Dicymolomia Julianalis (Walker), Musk Thistle, The Common Bagworm, And Cat-Tail, Deborah Landau

Masters Theses

The pyralid Dicymolomia julianalis (Walker) has an unusually diverse range of hosts, yet relatively little information is available on this lepidopteran. Food sources of the pyralid larva include musk thistle, Carduus thoermeri, eggs, larvae and pupae of the common bagworm, Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformis, and cat-tail, Typha spp.

A study was initiated to better understand the ecological interactions among D. julianalis and its hosts by monitoring the lifecycle of this pyralid and assessing its feeding habits. The potential of D. julianalis as a biological control agent of musk thistle and the common bagworm was also examined.

Adult D. julianalis moths …

Arthropod Dissemination Of Discula Destructiva : Conidia On Cornus Florida, Deanna M. Colby

Masters Theses

In 1978, a fungal disease, identified as Discula destructiva Redlin sp. Nov., was discovered killing native flowering dogwoods, Comus florida Link., in the northeastern United States. Since then, the pathogen has spread southward along the Appalachian mountain range to Georgia and Alabama, infecting dogwoods on more than 2.3 million hectares.

Known methods of pathogen dissemination include wind and rain. Other possible mechanisms for dispersing fungal conidia involve animal vectors, such as arthropods which may carry conidia externally and/or internally. The objective of this research was to determine if arthropods could disseminate viable D. destructiva conidia. The adult convergent lady beetle …

Attitudes Of Professionals, Volunteer Leaders, And 4-H Members Toward Competitive, Cooperative, And Individual Learning Styles Related To The 4-H Program In Tennessee, Darrell Edward Hale

Masters Theses

The major purpose of the study was to determine the attitudes of 4-H agents, volunteer leaders, and 4-H members toward competition, cooperation, and individualism in the 4-H program in Tennessee. Data was obtained from 906 respondents of which 69 were agents, 170 were volunteers, and 667 were 4-H members.

Survey questions dealt with demographic data of each group such as grade in school, gender, age, length of employment, leader training meetings attended, job location, job responsibility, and participation in livestock shows. The data obtained in the study were analyzed using mean scores and percentages. An attitudinal scale was developed to …

Municipal Sewage Sludge And Phosphorus As Soil Amendments For Enhancing Wildlife Habitat On Reclaimed Surface Mines, Cynthia L. Walker

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the benefit of municipal sewage sludge and/or phosphorus as soil amendments for enhancing wildlife habitat on reclaimed surface mined land. Five forage seed mixtures beneficial to wildlife were tested: 1) Ladino clover and timothy 2) switchgrass, indiangrass, and little bluestem 3) kobe lespedeza and orchardgrass 4) korean lespedeza and orchardgrass 5) A. U. lotan lespedeza and orchardgrass. An unseeded control was included. The objectives of the experiment were 1) to compare species viability and plant productivity on surface mined land amended with and without sludge and/or phosphorus, 2) to evaluate minesoil acidity, …

A Genetic Algorithm For The Vehicle Routing Problem, Vickie Dawn Wester

Masters Theses

The purpose of this research was to develop a version of a genetic algorithm (GA ) which would provide near optimal solutions for Vehicle Routing Problems (VRP) with both time and weight constraints. The genetic algorithm used for the experimentation was adapted from a GA which had been developed by James Bean at the University of Michigan to solve machine scheduling problems. The VRP data sets used in this research were obtained from the literature. Various aspects of the GA were experimented with in order to develop a version which would perform consistently well for all the data sets. The …