Digital Commons Network^™

The Calculation Of Characteristic Impedance And Propagation Operator Associated With Isothermal And Viscous Effects In Acoustic Tubes, Dean R. Wheeler

Faculty Publications

Chebychev type approximations are used to represent the Kelvin functions and in turn the complex Bessel functions needed in modeling the characteristic impedance and propagation operator for an acoustic tube. This technique is used to approximate the Bessel functions of the first kind of order zero and order one with complex arguments. The method is then used to approximate the ratio of Bessel functions in an effort to decrease computing time. The results are used in electrical analog expressions for computing system frequency response of miniature transducers.

Development Of A Frost Heave Test Apparatus, Russell David Lay

Theses and Dissertations

Frost heave damage to roadways costs millions of dollars every year. The need for an improved understanding of the fundamental mechanisms associated with frost heave and methods for efficiently improving frost-susceptible materials prompted the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Brigham Young University (BYU) to undertake a project to design, construct, and verify the functionality of a new frost heave testing apparatus. Frost heave research has been carried out for more than 75 years. The equipment used to conduct this testing has advanced in accuracy and utility over the years. To establish a background in past and current frost …

Combating The Banality Of Evil: Portrayals Of The Literary Female Villain In Gã¼Nter Grass's Danziger Trilogie And Novella, Im Krebsgang., Joseph Ephraim Baumgarten

Theses and Dissertations

In Günter Grass's Danzig Trilogy and novella, Im Krebsgang, an antagonistic female type makes a repeated appearance. She appears in the guise of Susi Kater and Luzie Rennwand in Die Blechtrommel, and as Tulla Pokriefke in the other works, Katz und Maus, Hundejahre, and Im Krebsgang. This antagonistic female type is not like other women in these works. A review of Le Deuxième Sexe by feminist Simone de Beauvoir reveals several crucial components contributing to woman's position in society. Most essentially, a woman's natural attributes and (dis)abilities and the conventions of society have enforced her historical submission to man. This …

A Method For Characterizing The Properties Of Industrial Foams, Shaun M. Salisbury

Theses and Dissertations

Assessing the effect of foam layers on transport phenomena is of significant interest in many industries, so a method for predicting foam layer properties has been developed. A model of the propagation of radiation from an amplitude-modulated laser beam through a non-absorbing foam layer has been developed using diffusion theory. Measurements predicted by diffusion theory were compared to results generated using Monte Carlo methods for a variety of foam layer properties in both the time-domain and the frequency-domain. The properties that were varied include the layer thickness, the scattering coefficient, and the asymmetry parameter. Layer thicknesses between 8.5 mm and …

Cooperative Control Of Miniature Air Vehicles, Derek R. Nelson

Theses and Dissertations

Cooperative control for miniature air vehicles (MAVs) is currently a highly researched topic. There are many application for which MAVs are well suited, including fire monitoring, surveillance and reconaissance, and search and rescue missions. All of these applications can be carried out more effictively by a team of MAVs than by a single vehicle. As technologies for microcontrollers and small sensors have improved so have the capabilities of MAVs. This improvement in MAV performance abilities increases the possibility for cooperative missions. The focus of this research was on cooperative timing missions. The issues faced when dealing with multi-MAV flight include …

Estimating The Discrepancy Between Computer Model Data And Field Data: Modeling Techniques For Deterministic And Stochastic Computer Simulators, Emily Joy Dastrup

Theses and Dissertations

Computer models have become useful research tools in many disciplines. In many cases a researcher has access to data from a computer simulator and from a physical system. This research discusses Bayesian models that allow for the estimation of the discrepancy between the two data sources. We fit two models to data in the field of electrical engineering. Using this data we illustrate ways of modeling both a deterministic and a stochastic simulator when specific parametric assumptions can be made about the discrepancy term.

Educating For Democracy: Reviving Rhetoric In The General Education Curriculum, David M. Stock

Theses and Dissertations

This study is, in part, a response to arguments that claim higher education fails to prepare students with fundamental communication skills necessary for everyday life and indicative of "educated" persons. Though the validity of such arguments is contestable, they nonetheless reflect fundamental inadequacies in current educational theories and practices that have evolved over centuries of curricular, cultural, and socioeconomic change. Current theories and practices in higher education, specifically general education, reflect a misunderstanding of both the purpose of education in a democracy and the role of the liberal arts, specifically rhetoric, in accomplishing that purpose. The consequences of rhetorically-impoverished general …

Exploration Of Lip Shape Measures And Their Association With Tongue Contact Patterns, Jessica Lynn Wagner

Theses and Dissertations

A variety of tools and techniques have been developed to measure the movements of the vocal tract, specifically of the tongue and lips. In recent years, computer technology has allowed for extensive exploration of these precise movements and for the development of speech recognition systems. However, there has been relatively little work on the combination of visible facial movements and internal articulatory activity. In this study, two different technologies were used to explore the internal and external movements of speech production in eight speakers: palatometry quantified tongue contact patterns and computerized video image analysis was used to derive lip shape …

Piecing Together The Triassic/Jurassic Stratigraphy Along The South Flank Of The Uinta Mountains, Northeast Utah: A Stratigraphic Analysis Of The Bell Springs Member Of The Nugget Sandstone, Paul H. Jensen Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

Nomenclature for the Upper Triassic and Lower Jurassic strata along the south flank of the Uinta Mountains has been somewhat confusing because of the position of the study area between southern Wyoming, where one set of names is used, and central/southern Utah where a different set of formation names is used. The Nugget Sandstone or Glen Canyon Sandstone of the eastern Uinta Mountains overlies the Upper Triassic Popo Agie or Chinle Formation. The nature of the contact between these two formations is unclear both in stratigraphic location and conformability. The Chinle Formation consists, in ascending order, of the Gartra Member, …

Toward Ontology Generation From Tables, Deryle W. Lonsdale, Yuri A. Tijerino, David W. Embley, Yihong Ding, George Nagy

Faculty Publications

At the heart of today’s information-explosion problems are issues involving semantics, mutual understanding, concept matching, and interoperability. Ontologies and the Semantic Web are offered as a potential solution, but creating ontologies for real-world knowledge is nontrivial. If we could automate the process, we could significantly improve our chances of making the Semantic Web a reality. While understanding natural language is difficult, tables and other structured information make it easier to interpret new items and relations. In this paper we introduce an approach to generating ontologies based on table analysis. We thus call our approach TANGO (Table ANalysis for Generating Ontologies). …

Performance Of Aic-Selected Spatial Covariance Structures For Fmri Data, David A. Stromberg

Theses and Dissertations

FMRI datasets allow scientists to assess functionality of the brain by measuring the response of blood flow to a stimulus. Since the responses from neighboring locations within the brain are correlated, simple linear models that assume independence of measurements across locations are inadequate. Mixed models can be used to model the spatial correlation between observations, however selecting the correct covariance structure is difficult. Information criteria, such as AIC are often used to choose among covariance structures. Once the covariance structure is selected, significance tests can be used to determine if a region of interest within the brain is significantly active. …

The Contribution Of Couple Leisure Involvement, Leisure Time And Leisure Satisfaction To Marital Satisfaction, Heather Ann Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to further clarify the relationship between couple leisure patterns and marital satisfaction by examining the contribution of joint couple leisure involvement, leisure time, and leisure satisfaction to couples' satisfaction with married life. The sample consisted of 48 married couples (N = 96). The Marital Activity Profile (MAP), a modified version of the Family Leisure Activity Profile (FLAP) was used to determine couple leisure involvement in core and balance leisure activities and leisure satisfaction. The Satisfaction With Married Life (SWML), a modified version of the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS) was used to measure marital …

Incorporating Computational Fluid Dynamics Into The Preliminary Design Cycle, Jonathan Knighton Shelley

Theses and Dissertations

Industry is constantly looking for ways to bring new or derivative products to market in the shortest amount of time for the least amount of money. To accomplish this, Industry has adopted Computer Aided Engineering (CAX) tools that perform structural, flow, manufacturing, and cost analysis. The way in which a company utilizes these CAX tools can determine the success of these new products. One of these tools that Industry often struggles with in the preliminary design of a product is Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). Some of the challenges presented by CFD are the time it takes to create a CAD …

The School Counseling Psychology Program: A Qualitative Study., Daniel Vern Barnes

Theses and Dissertations

The service role and functions of school counseling and school psychology have been discussed extensively for several decades. The literature from each professional discipline is replete with calls to expand the training and service capacity of these school professionals. Simultaneously calls are made for even broader educational reform as it specifically relates to student pupil services. From within this context an integrated school counseling and school psychology program known as the School Counseling Psychology Program was organized and administered at Brigham Young University. This qualitative dissertation study highlights the perceived strengths and limitations of this integrated training program. The impact …

Detecting Similar Html Documents Using A Sentence-Based Copy Detection Approach, Rajiv Yerra

Theses and Dissertations

Web documents that are either partially or completely duplicated in content are easily found on the Internet these days. Not only these documents create redundant information on the Web, which take longer to filter unique information and cause additional storage space, but also they degrade the efficiency of Web information retrieval. In this thesis, we present a new approach for detecting similar (HTML)Web documents and evaluate its performance. To detect similar documents, we first apply our sentence-based copy detection approach to determine whether sentences in any two documents should be treated as the same or different according to the degrees …

The Impact Of Antenna And Rf System Characteristics On Mimo System Capacity, Matthew Leon Morris

Theses and Dissertations

The recent growth in demand for wireless services coupled with the limited spectrum available for these services has spawned new efforts to increase the spectral efficiency of wireless links. Recent research has shown that in multipath propagation environments, the spatial characteristics of the propagation channel can be exploited to increase spectral efficiency through the use of multiple antennas at the transmitting and receiving nodes. Such multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems show promise for dramatic performance gains over their single-antenna counterparts. However, MIMO system performance is influenced by many different factors. Antenna array configuration directly contributes to MIMO system performance. The ability …

Constraint-Based Interpolation, Daniel David Goggins

Theses and Dissertations

Image reconstruction is the process of converting a sampled image into a continuous one prior to transformation and resampling. This reconstruction can be more accurate if two things are known: the process by which the sampled image was obtained and the general characteristics of the original image. We present a new reconstruction algorithm known as Constraint-Based Interpolation, which estimates the sampling functions found in cameras and analyzes properties of real world images in order to produce quality real-world image magnifications. To accomplish this, Constraint-Based Interpolation uses a sensor model that pushes the pixels in an interpolation to more closely match …

Secularization As A Decline In Religious Authority Over Gender, Catherine E. Meyers

Theses and Dissertations

Recent secularization debates have helped to interpret the changing influence of religion over time and over social life. I argue that Chaves' (1994) conception of secularization, that secularization occurs as a decline in religious authority, is an effective theoretical tool for describing religious change over time. Using GSS data and the example of gender ideology, I attempt to illustrate this concept and argue that this view of secularization, combined with a multidimensional approach to gender, is necessary to more fully explain the changing relationship among religion and gender over time.

The Effect Of Leisure-Based Screen Time On Physical Activity, Mary Dawn Sperry

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of leisure-based screen time on physical activity. Ninety-four families participated in this six-week study. Each family was randomly assigned to one of three screen time groups: (1) control group (2) 2-hour-limit group or (3) one-hour-limit group. Family members wore a Walk4Life LS 2505® pedometer to measure steps. Daily screen time logs were filled out each night and leisure-based screen time and steps were recorded. Analysis of variance (steps x group) was used to determine differences among the groups. Univariate tests showed there were no significant differences among any of the …

Nesting Automated Design Modules In An Interconnected Framework, Jared Matthew Young

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis seeks to extend the PDG methodology by developing a generalized formal method for nesting PDGs in an interconnected system. A procedure for decomposing an individual PDG into reusable modules will be defined and a software architecture will be presented which takes advantage of these reusable modules. This method breaks the PDG structure into discrete elements known as PDG objects, PDG modules and PDG services. Each of these elements forms a distinct unit of reuse and each can be seen as a "little" PDG. Two different industrial implementations of this method are presented. These examples show that it is …

The Perceptions Of High School Physical Educators On The Benefits Of Block Scheduling In The State Of Utah, Marilyn Miller

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to examine the extent to which the block schedule is being used in Utah high school physical education, and determine teacher's perceptions of block scheduling in teaching physical education. Block scheduling is a new and more efficient way of organizing the school day. NASPE has found the following positive effects in block scheduling: a better learning environment, more access to stronger curriculum, detailed instruction and demonstrations, and more variety in assessment (NASPE, 2000). Although there were several different forms of the block schedule reported, it appears that a majority of physical educators have discovered …

Reduced Complexity Detection Methods For Continuous Phase Modulation, Erik Samuel Perrins

Theses and Dissertations

Continuous phase modulation (CPM) is often plagued by high receiver complexity. One successful method of dealing with this is the well-known pulse amplitude modulation (PAM) representation of CPM, which was first proposed by Laurent. It is shown that the PAM representation also applies to multi-h CPM and ternary CPM, two previously unconsidered cases. In both cases it is shown that many PAM components may be required to exactly represent the signal. This is especially true of partial-response systems where the memory of the signal is long. Therefore, approximations are proposed which require only a limited number of terms. These extensions …

Self-Access Centers: Maximizing Learners' Access To Center Resources, Benjamin L. Mcmurry

Theses and Dissertations

The Self-Access Study Center (SASC) at Brigham Young University's English Language Center (ELC) is a self-access lab where students can work independently to improve their language skills. Although some students have discovered how to use the SASC effectively, the majority of them appear to be unaware of the resources available in the center. Their trips to the SASC end up becoming more like a cyber cafe situation, where friends send email and chat online. If the SASC is used merely as a computer lab, then students are not using the resources available to fine-tune their English skills. The current project …

The Development Of A Certified Nursing Assistant English For Specific Purposes Curriculum: Teaching Materials And Methods, Nancy Waireana Tarawhiti

Theses and Dissertations

After careful review of English for Specific Purposes (ESP) and English for Medical Purposes (EMP) literature, I assisted in the development of a curriculum for an ESP Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) Preparation course. The course participants were non-native English speaking employees of Utah Valley Regional Medical Center (UVRMC), currently working in the department of housekeeping, wanting to further their employment opportunities. The ESP CNA Preparation course was 12 weeks duration, three days per week, 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm.

My contribution to the curriculum was the development of teaching materials and methods and I used two guiding questions to assist …

Student Psychological Distress In A Career Exploration Course, Roger H. Belisle

Theses and Dissertations

A gap in the literature exists on the connection between an individual's career and non-career domains. Even less research exists on the topic of career development and how it relates to an individual's mental health. Accordingly, this study sought to investigate the connection between career issues and mental health by exploring the psychological distress levels of students enrolled in a career exploration course. During the course, students completed a bi-weekly online survey, the Outcome Questionnaire (OQ-45). Results support the possible connection between career issues and mental health and also show that for certain populations, career guidance interventions may decrease an …

Facing The Caree/Family Dichotomy: Traditional College Women's Perspectives, Lisa Michelle Leavitt

Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study explored the experience of 32 traditional college freshmen women as they sought to choose a career with the idea of balancing career and family in the future. A traditional woman was defined as a woman whose central value system and cultural mores emphasize homemaking and childrearing as their primary role. Guided interviews were conducted to obtain in-depth descriptions of participants' experience. The interviews were transcribed and interpreted using a synthesis of qualitative methods based on Kvale's method. The six themes were as follows: 1. The concept of balancing careers and family life is not being discussed or …

Biofilm Removal Using Bubbles And Sound, Michael R. Parini

Theses and Dissertations

Bacteria in biofilms adhere well to surfaces and are quite difficult to remove. Oral plaque is one example of a biofilm. Many researchers have studied ways to remove plaque and bacteria from surfaces. It has been found that the passage of a bubble across a surface to which bacteria has adhered can remove the bacteria from the surface. Biofilms of Streptococcus mutans were grown on glass coverslips as a simple model for oral plaque. The coverslips were mounted in a Plexiglas chamber filled with artificial saliva. A bubble stream was directed at the mounted biofilm. The velocity, gas fraction, median …

Pretend Play At Home: Creating An Educationally Enriched Environment For Emergent Literacy Among Preschool-Aged Children, Kelly King Anderson

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis will illustrate how pretend play can be used in the home for educational purposes. The major emphasis of the work will be emergent literacy, however, application principles can be applied in all subject areas. Parents who desire to expand their child's literacy skills while exposing the child to an arts enriched home environment need ideas and tools developed with supportive research to strengthen and focus their efforts. These tools will greatly expand parental resources by offering several principles as a guide for adapting existing classroom materials for home use. The following Seven Components form the core foundation for …

Gleaning The Harvest: Strangite Missionary Work, 1846-1850, Robin S. Jensen

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis argues that in studying the missionary work of the followers of James J. Strang, one gains a better understanding of the expectations and complexities of first generation Mormons. The introduction provides a background of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Strangite) from 1844 through 1850. Chapter One discusses the reasons why former Mormons joined Strang, which included their dissatisfaction with Brigham Young and their attraction to the doctrines and positions of Strang. Chapters Two and Three analyze and discuss the successes and failures of Strang's actual missionary work. The work initially succeeded because of the …

Full-Scale Lateral Load Test Of A 3x5 Pile Group In Sand, James Matthew Walsh

Theses and Dissertations

Although it is well established that spacing of piles within a pile group influences the lateral load resistance of that group, additional research is needed to better understand trends for large pile groups (greater than three rows) and for groups in sand. A 15-pile group in a 3x5 configuration situated in sand was laterally loaded and data were collected to derive p-multipliers. A single pile separate from the 15-pile group was loaded for comparison. Results were compared to those of a similar test in clays. The load resisted by the single pile was greater than the average load resisted by …