Digital Commons Network^™

Opinions As Colors: A Visual Analysis Technique For Modest Focus Group Transcripts, Oladokun -. Omojola -, Oscar Odiboh, Lanre Amodu

The Qualitative Report

A major concern in focus group research is how transcripts are analyzed. One way of resolving the issues involved is the use of images, in the place of words or numbers, to capture discussion outcomes. This work upgrades the visual perspective and uses colors to represent discussants’ opinions about leadership while the strength of those opinions is illustrated by some levels of transparency of those same colors. This model simplifies the expertise needed by enabling speedy determination of discussants’ submissions even as the transparencies, in the form of shades or tints, reveal the gravity of those submissions.

The Physics Of Moving Bodies, Diego Castano

Chemistry and Physics Faculty Articles

An alternative theoretical development of Special Relativity is presented in which Electrodynamics is not invoked. In deriving the Lorentz transformation in this manner, the existence of a maximal speed for all physical phenomena stands out. The mass-energy relation is also derived without reference to light.

Un développement théorique alternative de la relativité restreinte est présenté dans lequel l’électrodynamique n’est pas invoquée. En dérivant la transformation de Lorentz de cette manière, l’existence d’une vitesse maximale pour tous les phénomènes physiques ressort. La relation masse-énergie est également dérivée sans référence à la lumière.

Rigid Linkages And Partial Zero Forcing, Daniella Ferrero, Mary Flagg, H. Tracy Hall, Leslie Hogben, Jephian C.-H. Lin, Seth A. Meyer, Shahla Nasserasr, Bryan Shader

Mathematics Faculty Articles

Connections between vital linkages and zero forcing are established. Specifically, the notion of a rigid linkage is introduced as a special kind of unique linkage and it is shown that spanning forcing paths of a zero forcing process form a spanning rigid linkage and thus a vital linkage. A related generalization of zero forcing that produces a rigid linkage via a coloring process is developed. One of the motivations for introducing zero forcing is to provide an upper bound on the maximum multiplicity of an eigenvalue among the real symmetric matrices described by a graph. Rigid linkages and a related …

Pricing Currency Call Options, Rebecca Abraham

HCBE Faculty Articles

This paper presents a theoretical model to price foreign currency call options. Currency options are employed in international trade to reduce the risk of loss due to the reduction of revenues obtained in depreciating foreign currency for an exporter, or the escalation of expense from appreciating foreign currency for an importer. Other users include banks and hedge funds who engage in currency speculation. Given the fluctuation of option prices over time, the model describes the distribution of foreign currency as a Weiner process for macroeconomically constrained foreign currencies followed by a Laplace distribution for unconstrained currencies. In a departure from …

Genomic Analysis Of Acropora Cervicornis Mucus And Sediments In The Florida Keys Tavernier Nursery, Rachel Zimmerman

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

White Band disease has devastated the staghorn coral Acropora cervicornis in recent decades, and it continues to impinge upon restoration efforts. The etiological agent(s) remain unknown as Koch’s postulates have yet to be satisfied, but disease may originate when opportunistic pathogens in the surface mucus layer exploit a stressed host. Using 16s rRNA sequencing, differences in the taxonomic diversity and relative abundances of bacteria within the mucus of A. cervicornis were documented between colonies of the same genotype, genotypes (n=8) categorized as having either high or low WBD susceptibility, and during a transplantation event. A. cervicornis colonies suspended from midwater …

A Comparison Of Benthic Habitats And Faunas Between The Miami Terrace (Proposed Calypso Pipeline Site) And The Pourtales Terrace (Coral Habitat Of Particular Concern), Laura Dell

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

Quantitative photographs of benthic communities at two northern Miami Terrace sites, originally investigated as part of an environmental impact survey in advance of the proposed Calypso pipeline, and two Pourtalès Terrace sites, investigated as part of an exploration of deep-sea coral and sponge ecosystems (DSCEs) within the Pourtalès Terrace Deep-water Coral Habitat Area of Particular Concern (CHAPC), were reanalyzed and compared for similarities and differences. Both terraces are part of an elongated lithified platform that parallels the southeastern Florida coast at depths averaging between 250 and 450 m. Although both sites have similar geological origins and lie under the Florida …

Next Generation Sequencing Methods For Coastal Zone Water Quality Monitoring, Catherine Iskrenko

HCNSO Student Capstones

When analyzing the water quality of the coastal zone, culture-based techniques have been utilized most often to identify Fecal Indicator Bacteria in samples. Since the advent of the Sanger Method for DNA sequencing, other techniques have arisen that provide significantly more information on the microorganisms in sample, but they are still not the mainstream for water quality analysis. This capstone reviews and compares culture-based techniques, DNA sequencing, RNA sequencing, qPCR for biomarker, and 16S rDNA sequencing to highlight their merits and shortcomings for analyzing environmental water samples. The technique presented that provides the broadest range of information (including the identification …

Meta-Analytic Summary Of Parasites And Diseases Of Elasmobranchs Found In Florida Waters, Alexis S. Modzelesky

HCNSO Student Capstones

Elasmobranchs have conservational and commercial importance. There is a need for a more complete understanding of their health, due to their ability to shape trophic webs and their money-making potential with fishers and ecotourists. Sharks have been known to influence the strength of food webs, including reef ecosystems where many fish species are harvested for food. The investigation of pathogenic agents and diseases in elasmobranchs has been biased to favor those natural enemies that inhabit the digestive system and epidermal surfaces. Certain groups of parasites such as cestodes, copepods, and monogeneans, were most often recorded in this study. The bacterial …

Inclusion For A Student With Vision Impairment: “They Accept Me, Like, As In I Am There, But They Just Won’T Talk To Me.”, Jill L. Opie, Jane Southcott

The Qualitative Report

We explore the experiences of Nick, a secondary school student with vision impairment in an Australian mainstream school in this study, and we particularly focus on whether he perceived his education as inclusive. We have used Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis in this single individual case as this approach explores our participant’s understandings which may be revealed by close examination of mindful experiences. The “gem” spoken by Nick (pseudonym), our 16-year old participant, was “They accept me, like as in I am there, but they just won’t talk to me.” This statement summarises his sense of not belonging, of being other, and …

Is Earnings Yield A Security Return Model Anomaly?, Rebecca Abraham, Charlie W. Harrington

HCBE Faculty Articles

This paper supplements the traditional security return model, by adding earnings yield to the risk-free rate, market risk, size, and book-to-market equity as predictors of security returns. Earnings yield is the ratio of net income to market price, so that it represents the segment of market price that depends upon operating performance of the firm, rather than market perception. This paper establishes a theoretical framework for the earnings yield construct, describing it as a predictor of return on assets, return on equity, economic value added, and the equity multiplier. Earnings yield, therefore, predicts the ability to purchase productive assets, achieve …

Parents’ Involvement In Their Children’S Education: The Value Of Parental Perceptions In Public Education, John Duman, Hasan Aydin, Burhan Ozfidan

The Qualitative Report

The purpose of this study was to gather data from public school parents that would contribute to the understanding of parental involvement with school choice for their children and of parental involvement with educational organizations. We employed a case study approach as the methodological basis for eliciting 22 multi-racial parents perceptions’ about school climate and their child’s school choice. Our comprehensive in-depth semi-structured interviews, field notes, observations, and documents data collection process incorporated feedback from potential respondents from the outset of the design process to enhance data quality. Verbatim transcripts and documents were analyzed using a content and thematic analysis …

Antipredatory Escape Behaviors Of Two Benthic Ctenophores In South Florida, Peter W. Glynn, Brian Coffman, Jeongran Vanderwoude, Nicolas Martinez, Joshua H. Dominguez, Julie M. Gross, Dorothy-Ellen A. Renegar

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

Benthic ctenophores, members of the family Coeloplanidae (Order Platyctenida, Phylum Ctenophora) are more widespread and abundant in tropical and subtropical marine environments than formerly recognized. Coeloplanid ctenophores are members of the most speciose family of benthic ctenophores, with 33 recognized species of Coeloplana and one species of the genus Vallicula (Mills 1998). The majority of coeloplanids are ectosymbionts of algae and diverse benthic invertebrates (Matsumoto 1999, Alamaru et al. 2015). Hundreds to thousands of individuals can occupy preferred habitats in < 1 m² of substrate patches. Galt (1998) noted Vallicula multiformis inhabiting algae in Hawaii at population densities as high as 10,000 …

Researching The Mechanisms Of Gossip In Organizations: From Fly On The Wall To Fly In The Soup, Dominique J. Darmon

The Qualitative Report

In this paper, I explored how to research a sensitive topic such as gossip in organizations and used a narrative approach to illustrate the methodological and ethical issues that come up when considering a variety of research methods. I first attempted to conduct an ethnographic research on a project group from a Dutch university undergoing a major change. At the very beginning of the project, as a participant observer, I struggled to remain an outsider, or a “fly on the wall.” But as issues of power came into play and access became increasingly problematic, I moved towards the role of …

Applications Of Click Chemistry In The Development Of Hiv Protease Inhibitors, Mukesh Madan Mudgal, Nagaraju Birudukota, Mayur A. Doke

Chemistry and Physics Faculty Articles

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) has been devastating for millions of people around the world. Inhibition of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) protease is among the most important approaches for the therapeutic intervention in HIV infection. Since the discovery of the HIV-1 protease, this enzyme has been considered as a key target for the inhibition of viral replication. A large body of research has been done to develop an effective HIV-1 protease inhibitor. There are to date 10 HIV-1 protease inhibitor drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that have improved the survival and quality of life of HIV …

Spatiotemporal Change In The Benthic Community Of Southeast Florida, Nicholas P. Jones

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

High-latitude reefs have been postulated as refugia, centers for resilience or the first areas to undergo re-organization under climate change. The Southeast Florida Reef Tract (SEFRT) is a high-latitude reef system (>25 °N) running parallel to the highly urbanized coastline of southeast Florida. With a benthic community comprised of a mixture of coral reef associated assemblages, the SEFRT is towards the northern limit of stony coral cover due to temperature constraints. This study analyzed spatial variations in benthic cover, spatiotemporal changes in the benthic community and the impact of spatial and temporal fluctuations in temperature on benthic cover on …

Presence/Absence And Density Data For Epipelagic Tows Collected During R/V Blazing Seven Cruises Lf2016a And Lf2016b, Northern Gulf Of Mexico From 2016-06-09 To 2016-07-28, Jay R. Rooker, David Wells

DEEPEND Datasets

This dataset reports presence/absence and density data for epipelagic tows collected in the northern Gulf of Mexico during R/V Blazing Seven cruises LF2016A and LF2016B (2016-06-09 to 2016-07-28). Larval fishes were sampled from 48 stations and cruise data were collected at each site including latitude/longitude, date, time, environmental data (temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen) and Sargassum dry weight. Larval catch data before and after the oil spill will be compared to improve our understanding of the causes of temporal variability as it relates to the Deep-Water Horizon oil spill (DWHOS). Habitat associations of selected taxa (billfishes, tunas, dolphinfishes, flyingfishes) will be …

Effects Of Ocean Warming, Sedimentation, And Parental Genotype On The Post-Settlement Survival And Growth Of Acropora Cervicornis Recruits, Jena Robbins

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

Ocean warming and increased sedimentation from coastal activities are major threats to coral persistence. This study assessed the effects of increased temperature and sedimentation on the survival and growth of Acropora cervicornisrecruits. The potential for adults from different regions and genotypes to confer their offspring with higher or lower tolerance to heat and/or sediment was also determined. Gametes were collected and brought to the laboratory for cross fertilization of different genotypes within the regions collected. Larval rearing and settlement were then performed in the laboratory. Newly settled recruits were reared at 29 and 31°C (current summer temperature for August …

Inventory Of Oceanic Fauna Data Including Species, Weight, And Measurements From R/V Point Sur (Cruise Dp05) In The Gulf Of Mexico From 2017-05-01 To 2017-05-11, April Cook, Tracey Sutton

DEEPEND Datasets

This dataset includes an inventory of Gulf of Mexico oceanic fauna data including species, weight, and measurements collected from R/V Point Sur (Cruise DP05) from 2017-05-01 to 2017-05-11. The main gear type used was a 10-m2 Multiple Opening Closing Net and Environmental Sensing System (MOCNESS). The MOCNESS was fitted with 6 nets which were opened according to the following depth scheme: net 0 from the surface to 1500m, net 1 from 1500-1200m, net 2 from 200-1000m, net 3 from 1000-600m, net 4 from 600-200m, and net 5 from 200m to the surface. Two trawls were conducted at each station sampled …

Ongoing Transposon-Mediated Genome Reduction In The Luminous Bacterial Symbionts Of Deep-Sea Ceratioid Anglerfishes, Tory Hendry, Lindsay L. Freed, Dana Fadera, Dante Fenolio, Tracey Sutton, Jose Lopez

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

Diverse marine fish and squid form symbiotic associations with extracellular bioluminescent bacteria. These symbionts are typically free-living bacteria with large genomes, but one known lineage of symbionts has undergone genomic reduction and evolution of host dependence. It is not known why distinct evolutionary trajectories have occurred among different luminous symbionts, and not all known lineages previously had genome sequences available. In order to better understand patterns of evolution across diverse bioluminescent symbionts, we de novo sequenced the genomes of bacteria from a poorly studied interaction, the extracellular symbionts from the “lures” of deep-sea ceratioid anglerfishes. Deep-sea anglerfish symbiont genomes are …

Southeast Florida Large (>2 Meter) Diseased Coral Colony Intervention Summary Report, Brian K. Walker, Alysha Brunelle

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Reports

No abstract provided.

Using Experiential Learning In Course Curriculum: The Case Of A Core Engineering Graphics Course, Martha Marie Snyder, Manuel Salinas, Molly J. Scanlon

CCAC Faculty Proceedings, Presentations, Speeches and Lectures

This work-in-progress paper overviews how an experiential education program was established at a private, non-profit university in the southeast, describes the process for certifying experiential courses using a formal course review process and qualification rubric, and details the case of a freshman engineering graphics course.

Grounded in the early works of Dewey, Lewin, and Piaget, experiential learning theory has become increasingly popular in higher education. Experiential learning serves as a foundation for lifelong learning and the development of the whole self as a citizen, family member and human being (Kolb, 2015). Austin and Rust (2015) define experiential learning as “‘hands-on’ …

Past, Present, And Future: Narrative Reflections Of A Novice Researcher, Katie L. Laux

The Qualitative Report

In this article, I use an autoethnographical approach to explore how I identified my research interests of student voice, action research, and students as scientific researchers. My purpose was to identify some of the influences on my academic life. To achieve this goal, I used my writing as a method of both data collection and analysis combined with my parents’ interpretations of events to create narratives of my lived experiences. This process allowed me to make sense of how my lived experiences shaped my decision to become a doctoral student and the choices I have made as a novice researcher.

Hypocrisy And Corruption: How Disparities In Power Shape The Evolution Of Social Control, Omar T. Eldakar, J. Oliver Kammeyer, Nikhil Nagabandi, Andrew C. Gallup

Biology Faculty Articles

Altruism presents an evolutionary paradox, as altruistic individuals are good for the group yet vulnerable to exploitation by selfish individuals. One mechanism that can effectively curtail selfishness within groups is punishment. Here, we show in an evolutionary game-theoretical model that punishment can effectively evolve and maintain high levels of altruism in the population, yet not all punishment strategies were equally virtuous. Unlike typical models of social evolution, we explicitly altered the extent to which individuals vary in their power over others, such that powerful individuals can more readily punish and escape the punishment of others. Two primary findings emerged. Under …

An Adaptation Of Grounded Theory Using A Modified Convergent Interviewing Technique, Elica Safari Mehr, Peter Carswell, Karen Day

The Qualitative Report

Grounded Theory (GT) researchers have been using adaptations of this methodology to serve theory building purposes, following different theoretical frameworks. However, there is a lack of enough information on the variation of GT used, or their epistemological assumptions in some studies. The purpose of this paper is to provide our experience in a GT study using a modified convergent interviewing technique to help guide other researchers on using this method and build their own research design. We have combined a decision-making technique, called Delphi, with convergent interviewing and provided a clear explanation of the steps required to apply this method …

Identification Of A Novel Polyamine Scaffold With Potent Efflux Pump Inhibition Activity Toward Multi-Drug Resistant Bacterial Pathogens, Renee Fleeman, Ginamarie Debevec, Kirsten Antonen, Jessie L. Adams, Radleigh Santos, Greg Welmaker, Richard A. Houghten, Marc Giulianotti, Lindsey N. Shaw

Mathematics Faculty Articles

We have previously reported the use of combinatorial chemistry to identify broad-spectrum antibacterial agents. Herein, we extend our analysis of this technology toward the discovery of anti-resistance molecules, focusing on efflux pump inhibitors. Using high-throughput screening against multi-drug resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa, we identified a polyamine scaffold that demonstrated strong efflux pump inhibition without possessing antibacterial effects. We determined that these molecules were most effective with an amine functionality at R1 and benzene functionalities at R2 and R3. From a library of 188 compounds, we studied the properties of 5 lead agents in detail, observing a fivefold to eightfold decrease …

Heavy Metal Accumulation In Seagrasses In Southeastern Florida, Erin Smith

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

Seagrass beds are among the most ecologically important systems in the marine environment. They provide the primary production to nearby coral reef and mangrove communities, and seagrasses comprise a large component of the diets of many marine organisms including fishes, small invertebrate species, and many protected species such as manatees and sea turtles. This consumption provides a pathway for many contaminants to enter the marine food web via the seagrasses. The coastal location of seagrass beds causes them to be especially susceptible to anthropogenic pollution, including accumulation of heavy metals, which has been shown to have many adverse health effects …

Master Of Science In Computer Science, Nova Southeastern University

College of Engineering and Computing Course Catalogs

No abstract provided.

A Stem Experiential Learning Experience: A Five-Year Synthesis Of Lessons Learned, Deborah L. Mccarthy

Experiential Learning & Teaching in Higher Education

From Fall 2012 to Fall 2016, 127 teacher candidates at a public university in southern Louisiana and elementary school students in grades four, five, six, and eight formed a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) partnership to develop and implement science projects. The research questions of the accompanying study over the five years were: 1.Will mentoring a science project increase student understanding of best practices afforded by the scientific method? 2. What strategies improve the quality of a STEM experiential learning experience? A paired-samples t-test on teacher candidates’ pre- and post-test scores showed a significant difference in mean scores, indicating …

The Amazing Liaison: Innovative Ideas To Engage Diverse Populations With Stem, Craig Amos, Kelly Grove, Sandy Avila

Staff Presentations, Proceedings, Lectures, and Symposia

No abstract provided.

Assessment Of Mesophotic Coral Ecosystem Connectivity For Proposed Expansion Of A Marine Sanctuary In The Northwest Gulf Of Mexico: Larval Dynamics, Lysel Garavelli, Michael S. Studivan, Joshua D. Voss, Alyson Kuba, Joana Figueiredo, Laurent M. Cherubin

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles

In coral reef ecosystems, mesophotic coral habitat (>30 m to the end of the photic zone) are extensions of shallow reefs and contribute to the persistence of coral reef populations. In the North West Gulf of Mexico (NW GOM), the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary (FGBNMS) is an isolated reef ecosystem comprising contiguous shallow and mesophotic reefs habitats on two central banks along the margin of the continental shelf. A future expansion of the sanctuary is proposed to include additional mesophotic banks and aims at building a network of protected areas in the NW GOM to ensure the …