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Keeping Memory Alive: Exploring The Personal Experiences Of Women In Midlife, Mary Konz

Rehabilitation, Human Resources and Communication Disorders Undergraduate Honors Theses

The purpose of this study was to explore how women in their midlife years use activities of daily living to address possible memory loss by exploring their personal experiences. The review of the literature provides an overview of memory disorders including Alzheimer's disease and other dementias as well as three specific aspects of memory that are affected by these: verbal, spatial, and procedural memory. A questionnaire that targeted women between the ages of 50 and 60 years of age was distributed via social media and e-mail for four weeks. Eighteen women completed the questionnaire. Results of the study suggest that …

Parent Perceptions Of The Relationship Between Pacifier Use, Thumb Sucking And Speech Production, Kelsey Elizabeth Wendt

Rehabilitation, Human Resources and Communication Disorders Undergraduate Honors Theses

The purpose of this study is to investigate the perceptions of parents about the relationship between speech production and the usage of pacifiers and thumb sucking. One hundred and twenty five participants with children below the age of ten completed a digital questionnaire sent out through social media. The results revealed that the parents who let their child use a pacifier or suck their thumb use a variety of sources to gain information and form opinions about this. These ranged from print materials to website to friends and family. Pacifier use was more frequent than thumb sucking. Most parents did …

Biology And Control Of Rice False Smut Caused By Ustilaginoidea Virens (Teleomorph Villosiclava Virens), Andrew Clayton Jecmen

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Rice false smut (FS), a disease caused by Ustilaginoidea virens (Cke.) Takahashi (1896), was first reported in northeastern Arkansas counties in 1997. The first objective of this research was to establish a collection of U. virens isolates from geographically diverse regions of Arkansas. Three U. virens isolates and chlamydospores from `Templeton' and `Clearfield-151' rice cultivars were used to determine the effects of temperature and pH on mycelial growth and germination. A nested-PCR protocol and histological methods were used to determine if U. virens infects and colonizes rice seedlings and spikelets on panicles. The sensitivity of three U. virens isolates was …

Relationship Between 1,3-Dichloropropene And Nitrogen Fertility In Cotton In The Presence Of Root-Knot And Reniform Nematodes, Amanda Michelle Greer

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The use of soil fumigation for nematode management in cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) has become increasingly popular in recent years in the absence of effective resistant cultivars. While soil fumigation is relatively expensive, lint yields have consistently been improved to make this practice profitable in fields with severe nematode pressure. Growers in southern Arkansas have observed changes in cotton growth patterns when severely infested fields are fumigated. The most noticeable change has been excessive (rank) growth resulting in an increased need for growth regulators, especially where the nitrogen fertilization exceeds standard recommendations. Field studies were conducted between 2007 and 2010 to …

Taxonomic And Seasonal Variation Among Extant Hyracoids Based On Dental Microwear Texture Analysis, Ann Marie Walcutt

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A number of works have been published on habitats and diets of living hyraxes but much remains to be learned about the paleoenvironment contexts of the much larger, more dominant but now extinct forms of the order. Here, I analyze the dental microwear of modern hyraxes to assess dietary and ecological relationships among the four extant species of Procaviidae: Heterohyrax brucei, Procavia capensis, Dendrohyrax arboreus, and Dendrohyrax dorsalis. The purpose of this study was to establish an extant baseline series for the interpretation of microwear texture patterns, and inference of diets, of extinct members of the …

The Relationship Between Muscular Power And Functional Fitness Among Older Adults, Corinne A. Parkins

Health, Human Performance and Recreation Undergraduate Honors Theses

The purpose of the study was to determine whether functional fitness is a good predictor of average and peak muscular power among adults over the age of 65. The 30-second chair stand and 8-foot-up-and-go test were used to define functional fitness and were administered to 57 older adults. Muscular power output was measured using the Tendo Weightlifting Analyzer during 5 chair stands. Relative average and peak power were used in the analyses. An independent t-test was run on all variables to distinguish differences between men and women, and multiple regression analyses were performed to detect the relationship between the two …

Alteration Of Host Cell Ubiquitination By The Intracellular Bacterial Pathogen Coxiella Burnetii, Lindsey Elizabeth Pritchett

Poultry Science Undergraduate Honors Theses

The intracellular bacterial agent of Q fever, Coxiella burnetii, replicates within a phagolysosome-like parasitophorous vacuole (PV) in human macrophages and delivers effector proteins to the host cytosol via a Dot/Icm type IV secretion system (T4SS). T4SS effectors are critical for PV formation and prevention of host cell death that allows sufficient time for bacterial replication. Recruitment of ubiquitin-related components to the C. burnetii PV is also predicted to be involved in PV formation and bacterial replication and is likely controlled by effector proteins. In this study, we assessed the role of the Dot/Icm T4SS in regulating ubiquitination by comparing subcellular …

Optimizing In Vitro Extracellular Matrix Production Using Polymer Scaffolds With Targeted Pore Size, Addison M. Walker

Biomedical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Extracellular matrix (ECM) has been shown to provide the framework needed for healthy tissue to grow after experiencing an injury. The optimization of growing ECM is a pressing concern in the tissue regeneration field. From prior research, an in vitro approach for harvesting ECM has been created using polyurethane (PU) foams seeded with cells. Our approach aimed at discovering if the pore size of the foams increased the amount of recovered ECM. Scaffolds of targeted pore size were created by separating sugar granules using a sieve, packing the sugar into a cylindrical mold, then pouring PU over the sugar. Three …

The Horsemen Of The Apocalypse: Predictors Of Recessions, Sarah-Margaret Pittman

Finance Undergraduate Honors Theses

For decades, many financial economists have suspected that an inverted yield curve predicts recession. This paper explores the accuracy of this belief by testing multiple variables and seeing if they result in a recession. The dependent variable tested is probability of a recession; independent variables tested are: three-month Treasury-bill minus ten-year Treasury note; controls include: three-month Treasury-bill yield to maturity, ten-year Treasury-note yield to maturity, number of months since last recession, equal-weighted return on the S&P 500, value-weighted return minus equal-weighted return, return on the S&P 500, rate of inflation, and the interaction between the difference between the three-month Treasury-bill …

How Imbalanced Excitation And Inhibition May Cause Low Entropy Brain Dynamics, Qusay Redwan Alfaori

Biomedical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

To study the effect of the imbalance of excitation and inhibition neurons on brain entropy using a computer model of a brain. The brain model will be composed of a neural network and entropy of the neural network will be measured quantitatively. Entropy in this context quantifies how many different patterns of activated neurons the brain can create. Imbalance between excitation and inhibition neurons causes the brain to malfunction, which can be an underlying cause of autism.

5ht And The 5ht Receptors- Relevance To Cardiac Valve Disease, Christopher Ryan Martindale

Biomedical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Recent studies have revealed that elevated levels of serotonin or 5HT lead to valve dysfunction. A mouse model was successfully established to investigate the effects on the aortic valve in subjects with elevated 5HT levels along with cardiovascular hypertension. For each two-week trial, eight C57BL/6J mice were divided into the following expermental groups: control, 5HT, angiotensin II, and 5HT+angiotensin II. The drug was delivered to the mice via osmotic pumps (Ang II: 0.4ng/g/min, 5HT:0.0025ng/g/min) or direct injections(Ang II: 0.1 mg, 5HT: 2.12 mg, every other day) and the blood pressure of the mice was continually monitored via the CODA tail …

One Mans Dream: How A Company's Unique Culture Can Translate Into Long Term Success, Carli Zink

Accounting Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis answers the question of whether a unique organizational culture can help a company find long-term success. My main focus of the thesis was on the Walt Disney Co., a company that I think has set the standard in organizational culture and is where I will be starting my professional career. My aim was to find what aspects of culture are most important to have, and how companies can use their culture to gain a competitive advantage. In order to answer this question, I researched companies that have been recognized for having a very successful organizational culture, as well …

A Swat Model For A Cocoa Growing Region In Ghana, Russell Thomas Bair

Biological and Agricultural Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

For agricultural outputs to rise with population, more sustainable and productive methods must be identified. Watershed modeling is a way to relatively quickly compare possible impacts of large scale agricultural practice changes. The goal of this project was to develop a watershed model for the Pra River basin in southern Ghana, a cocoa growing region, that could be used for future impact studies of land management practice options. The model was developed using the Soil Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) and calibrated using the best daily stream flow data that could be readily located. With an R2 value of 0.57 and …

Production Of A Soybean Meal With High-Protein And Low Anti-Nutritional Factors For Fish Feed, Maria De Las Mercedes Castro

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Aquaculture is one of the fastest growing areas of the food production system. According to the FAO, its rise is expected to continue through the year 2030 in order to maintain per-capita consumption levels required for the increasing population. Fishmeal--obtained from wild-harvested fish--has been the source of protein for fish feed. However, data indicates that these fish harvests are in decline, which could restrain that growth. The possibility of a shortage of fishmeal prompted the industry to look into possible alternatives. Soybean meal appears as a promising substitute since it is an affordable high quality source of protein. However, the …

Experimental And Simulation Studies Of The Permeation Of Water Through Polydimethylsiloxane (Pdms), Dilawer Singh

Mechanical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Experimental and computational techniques were used to test the permeation of water through polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS). The experimental portion consisted of creating a permeation cell in such a way that water’s only path to escape was through a PDMS membrane. Weight measurements were recorded and turned into a permeation coefficient of water through different types of PDMS. The membranes were then stretched to a certain amount to study the effect on water permeation. The computational part used Large-scale Atomic / Molecular Massively Parallel Simulator (LAMMPS) to study the diffusion coefficient of water through PDMS. The initial step was to translate coarse-grain …

Ultrathin Ptfe Coating For Hypodermic Needles Enabled By Mussel-Inspired Pda Adhesive Layer, Spencer A. Foust

Mechanical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) is a synthetic fluoropolymer of tetrafluoroethylene, commonly known by its brand name Teflon®, which has many desirable properties such as a low coefficient of friction, high temperature resistance, anti-microbial properties, hydrophobicity, biocompatibility, and chemical resistance. One of the major challenges caused by the non-stick property of PTFE is its poor adhesion to substrates: PTFE coatings can be easily detached from surfaces under frictional forces and shear. The molecule polydopamine (PDA) was discovered as the key protein for adhesion between polytetrafluoroethylene and substrates of many materials, including steel, and thus has been used as a unique approach for coatings. …

Effects Of Instrumentation On Dental Microwear Textures: Reanalysis And Augmentation Of An Early Hominin Sample, Anna Jacquelyn Ragni

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Dental microwear texture analysis has been refined to a methodology relying upon scanning confocal microscopy for its advantages of repeatability and standardized quantification. A new instrument, the Plu Neox (Sensofar Corp.) confocal profiler recently entered the market, sparking questions among dental anthropologists related to the advantages and efficacy of this new technology, which has better resolution and lighting properties than previously available white-lighted based confocal profilers. This thesis reports on three complementary studies that set out to evaluate the comparability of the Plu Neox to the Plu Standard system and assess its ability to distinguish primates on the basis of …

Fluorescence Imaging Of Microdialysis Sampling, Jordan Leigh Haynie

Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Many biomolecules including proteolytic enzymes known as matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are released when a material, such as a microdialysis probe, is implanted in a living organism. The MMPs cleave structural protein components of the extracellular matrix and play an important role in biological functions such as wound healing.1-3 Many enzymatic substrates for MMPs have fluorescent product mimics, and the mimics can be used as agents to monitor biochemical processes.1 In this study, microdialysis, a minimally invasive sampling technique, was combined with fluorescence imaging to determine the possibility of monitoring microdialysis in real-time, and thus provide a method that could ultimately …

Examination Of Nitrogen To Phosphorus Ratio In Nutrient Removal From Wastewater Through Chlorella Vulgaris, Courtney L. Hill

Civil Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

A need for phosphorus removal is becoming increasingly evident as some wastewater treatment plants struggle to meet wastewater effluent nutrient requirements. High nutrient levels in wastewater effluents have also caused ongoing tension between the state of Oklahoma and Arkansas regarding the pollution of the Illinois River. This research seeks to establish the relationship between nitrogen to phosphorus ratio in wastewater and the level of nutrient reduction using Chlorella vulgaris. Seed cultures of Chlorella vulgaris were added into solutions with various ratios of nitrate to phosphate representative of treated domestic wastewater and the removal of nitrogen and phosphorus were measured in …

Impacts Of The Open Door Policy And Globalization On Income Inequality In China Between The 20th Century And The Early 21st Century, Qili Jin

Accounting Undergraduate Honors Theses

Before economic reform, the Chinese economy experienced a long period of recession. The creation of Open Door Policy re-introduced globalization to China, modernized the country’s economy, and boosted citizens’ standards of living, especially for people who live in the Special Economic Zone and Tier 1 cities. As globalization re-emerged, extreme income inequality became one of the hottest topics. Prior research leads to the hypothesis that re-introduction of globalization led by the Open Door Policy increased income inequality in China. While international inequality focuses on the unequal distribution on a global scale, domestic income inequality is defined as the how material …

Lost In Translation: Impediments To The Homogenous Interpretation Of Ifrs Translations, Addison N. Scott

Accounting Undergraduate Honors Theses

In order to satisfy the financial needs of an increasingly globalized world, regulators and accounting professionals have pursued the harmonization of national accounting standards through International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). These standards have been adopted in more than 100 countries and are currently available in 47 languages. When financial information is prepared in accordance with IFRS, users of that information may assume that the application of the accounting rules is consistent across countries. In actuality, many differences in interpretation and application can occur because of the difficulties inherent in translating the standards from one language to another. Inconsistent application of …

Survival, Abundance, And Geographic Distribution Of Temperate-Nesting Canada Geese (Branta Canadensis) In Arkansas, Margaret Eliese Ronke

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Temperate-nesting Canada geese in Arkansas have grown in abundance and range since reintroduction in the 1980s. The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission uses harvest and other methods to maintain the population at desired levels. However, continued management of temperate-nesting geese requires knowledge of the population's demographics and current range to help establish quantifiable management goals.

To assess the need and effect of changing hunting regulations, survival and recovery rates and abundance were estimated for this population. Annual survival rates of temperate-nesting Canada geese banded and recovered in Arkansas from 2005 to 2011 were estimated using the Burnham joint live-dead recovery …

Investigation Of Rice Bran Derived Anti-Cancer Pentapeptide For Mechanistic Potency In Breast Cancer Cell Models, Ruiqi Li

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Bioactive peptides derived from food sources with anti-proliferative properties against cancer have drawn more attention in recent years. A pentapeptide derived from rice bran has shown anti-proliferative propertiesagainst human breast cancer cells. The objective of this study was to investigate the mechanistic action of the pentapeptide-induced apoptosis in breast cancer cell models (MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231). The growth inhibition activity of the pentapeptide was

evaluated by MTS[3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3- arboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium, inner salt] assayand trypan blue assay in a dose- and time-dependent manner.

The apoptotic properties of pentapeptide-induced apoptosis on cancerous breast cells were evaluated by morphological changes, DNA fragmentation, and caspases-3/7, -8,and -9 …

The Impact Of Intolerance Of Uncertainty On International Students' Intercultural And Intracultural Conflict Management, Yekaterina Syrtsova

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates the role of intolerance of uncertainty in international students' conflict management in intracultural and intercultural settings. International students at a large U.S. university were surveyed and their responses were analyzed using quantitative methods. Analyses indicated that the higher the intolerance of uncertainty scores, the higher the use of dominating and avoiding strategies. The results in this study also revealed that when controlling for sex, the higher the individuals' intolerance of uncertainty score, the lower their preference for integrating-compromising strategy. Finally, there were limited differences between the ways international students handle conflict with conflict partners from their own …

Factors Influencing Water Extractable Phosphorus Reduction In Poultry Litter By Chitosan Treatment, Zachary Paul Simpson

Biological and Agricultural Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Phosphorus is known to be a chief factor in the eutrophication of freshwaters. Phosphorus in land applied poultry litter can runoff and pollute these freshwaters. Chitosan, the deacetylated form of the biopolymer chitin, has been shown to have an effect on reducing water extractable phosphorus (WEP) in poultry litter when applied as a powder. The intent of this study was to measure the effect that acetic acid and incubation time have on chitosan’s ability to reduce WEP in poultry litter. The results were that the presence of poultry litter treatment (PLT) in the litter inhibits chitosan’s ability reduce WEP. Chitosan …

Validation Of A Diffuse Reflectance Microendoscope With Polydimethylsiloxane Optical Phantoms And Monte Carlo Modeling, Gage Joseph Greening

Biomedical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

We have introduced a method for creating thin-film PDMS optical phantoms that can be used to validate a bench-top optical device called a Diffuse Reflectance Microendoscope (DRME). The DRME is acquires data on cell surface morphology and sub-surface diffuse reflectance, which may provide clinicians with the tools to diagnose oral cancer at earlier stages. Phantoms were created with PDMS. Optical properties of the phantoms were controlled with the addition of nigrosin and titanium dioxide. Depth of phantoms was controlled by a spin coater. The DRME was built with a combination of filters and dichroic mirrors to separate electromagnetic radiation in …

Poly (Glycerol Sebacate) Nanofibers And Nanofilms For Tissue Engineering Application, Stephanie Grace Cone

Biomedical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

In the field of tissue engineering, the development of biodegradable scaffolds that provide both structure and functionality is a major challenge. The use of biological implants, such as decellularized tissues, provides a complete matrix with full tissue functionality, however, problems with immunogenicity often arise when implants from other organisms are used in treatments. As such, there are many benefits to the use of polymeric constructs in tissue engineering. The ability to customize the material, design, and size of an implant provides opportunities for increased structural support and controlled rates of biodegradation. The selection of polymers for tissue engineering applications requires …

Beginning Of Malignant Tumor Cells, Emily K. Shields

Biomedical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Despite advances in cancer treatments, cancer is still ranked the second leading cause of death. Cancers are started by cancer stem cells (CSCs). CSCs, also called tumor-initiating cells, are found in tumors and are responsible for the growth of tumors and the spread of cancer to other parts of the body. CSCs are very resistant, and cannot be killed by chemotherapy or radiation treatments. These cells can come from healthy stem cells. The environment surrounding the healthy stem cells and mature cells can cause mutations in the cell’s genetics, resulting in development of CSCs. The environment can also increase tumor …

Modeling Of An Oxygenation-Aided 3d Culture For Functional Beta-Cell Expansion, John Lance Mcreynolds

Biomedical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Introduction: Diabetes affects millions of people and its prevalence is increasing by 2-5% per year. A promising method for the control of diabetes is the transplant of pancreatic β-cell mass. Unfortunately, there is a shortage of the donor tissue that is needed to replace β-cell mass. A potential source of β-cells is the production of β-cells in vitro, but the proliferation rate of β-cells is very slow and elevating the proliferation rate can result in loss of cell function. We observed that β-cells benefit from being cultured in a 3D environment, but in the 3D culture the β-cells often die …

Understanding The Influence Of Interfacial Chemistry In Core, Core/Shell And Core/Shell/Shell Quantum Dots On Their Fluorescence Properties, Omondi Bernard Omogo

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals (quantum dots) have received a great deal of attention due to their superior size tunable properties and promising applications in many areas. Some of the most practical areas of their applications include light emitting diodes (LED), photovoltaic and biological studies. Synthetic methods of these crystals is becoming more established with new strategies being reported every now and then. However, quantitative studies connecting the processes at the interface, namely core-ligand, core-shell and shell-shells, to the overall quantum dots fluorescence properties are not well understood. Specifically for cores, relating surface-atoms interactions, solvents, ligands nature, density and functional groups on …