Digital Commons Network^™

Formulation Development, Characterization, And Optimization Of Antimalarial And Antibiotic Drugs, Kai-Wei Wu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Primaquine (PQ)-loaded solid lipid nanoparticles (SLN), nanostructured lipid carriers (NLC), and nano-emulsion (NE) were developed to investigate the influence of lipid excipients, surfactants, and drug loading on the physicochemical properties of lipid formulations. To investigate the drug release mechanisms from the lipid-based formulations, empirical release kinetic models such as zero-order, Higuchi, Korsmeyer-Peppas, and Hixson-Crowell were used. In an ex vivo hemolysis toxicity study, the efficacy of SLN, NLC, and NE to protect erythrocytes against PQ-induced cell lysis was investigated. The results show that all lipid formulations reduced the erythrocyte hemolysis by approximately 4.5-fold compared to the drug solution, suggesting that …

The Aesthetics Of Repair: The Way Of Zen And Appreciation, Tyler Ellis Dobbs

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The nature objects and how beings interact with them has long been a debate in the philosophic tradition. One aspect of this I have taken a look at is the aesthetic qualities entailed in this with particular attention paid to repair. In particular I explore the blurring of the subject-object distinction and the role of narrative in human engagement. I based my research and arguments primarily from Buddhist and Japanese Zen theories and ideas. Special attention was paid to the philosopher Kitaro Nishida and the Kyoto School philosophy tradition and ideas from Mahayana Buddhism.

The Efficacy Of Neurofeedback In The Treatment Of Individuals With Anxiety-Spectrum Disorders: A Meta-Analysis, Gordon Michael Russo

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A number of authors have published articles that assert the efficacy of neurofeedback (NFB) in the treatment of people with anxious symptomatology. Despite this, many insurance companies identify NFB as experimental, which prohibits individuals from utilizing benefits to obtain this therapeutic treatment. In order to examine these discrepancies, the present meta-analyses were conducted and guided by research questions designed to examine the overall effectiveness of NFB, the impact of participant characteristics, and identify the if there is a significant difference in anxiety-spectrum outcomes. Twenty-six trials were divided based on design (14 single group [SG]; 12 between group [BG]) and analyzed …

Constructing And Validating Feature Models Using Relational, Document, And Graph Databases, Hazim Shatnawi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Building a software product line (SPL) is a systematic strategy for reusing software within a family of related systems from some application domain. To define an SPL, a domain analyst must identify the common and variable aspects of a family of systems and capture them for later use in construction of specific products. To do so, Feature-Oriented Domain Analysis (FODA) introduced the feature model as an abstraction to represent the common and variable aspects, using a feature diagram to depict the model visually. However, this abstraction is often difficult for developers to use because most tools rely on specialized theories, …

Reducing Disparites In Act Results According To Racial Identity: An Applied Research Study Into The Weact Program In Tinlake High School, Marcus Stewart

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT The ACT provides opportunities for students of various socioeconomic backgrounds, racial identities, and family structures. Throughout the nation, there is a disparity that involves Black students scoring less than White students on the test by a margin of five points. The applied mixed methods research aimed to identify elements to help decrease the gap in student scores. The combined efforts of all the elements, tutorials, boot camps, ACT prep classes, and providing ACT resources in daily instruction formed the WeACT program. The students of Tinlake High School were exposed to this pilot program to assist in their ACT growth. …

A Valence-Bond Operator Algebra For Quantum Spin Models And Its Applications, Huu Tran Do

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Heisenberg Hamiltonian is the prototype model for quantum magnetism. The Hamilto- nian includes exchange couplings between vector spins, which are the intrinsic magnetic moments of localized electrons. The classical energy between any pair of interacting spins can be minimized by aligning them parallel (ferromagnetic case) or antiparallel (antiferromagnetic), depending on the sign of the coupling. But quantum fluctuations play a key role, and a full quantum mechanical treatment of the many-body system is generally required. Finding the exact ground-state energy and wave function of isotropic antiferromagnetic (AFM) systems for an arbitrary spin-S and lattice morphology is still a challenging …

Dynamics For Discretized Gravity In The Causal Set Approach, Benjamin Pilgrim

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Causal set theory is an approach to quantum gravity which replaces the continuous spacetime manifold with a discrete set of points and a partial order. In this work, I will focus on causal sets embeddable in two-dimensional manifolds, and define an action based on chains which in the continuum limit replicates the Einstein-Hilbert action; furthermore, I will propose a variational principle based on this action and numerically show it can distinguish nonflat manifoldlike causal sets from the most common type of nonmanifoldlike causal sets. I will then supplement this action with a boundary term similar to the Gibbons-Hawking-York boundary term …

Resonant Ultrasound Spectroscopy: Sensitivity Analysis For Anisotropic Materials With Hexagonal Symmetry, Christopher Lee Sevigney

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Resonance ultrasound spectroscopy (RUS) is an experimental method by which material properties are obtained by careful observation of the resonant vibrations of a meticulously crafted sample. Among the most common applications of this technique is the determination of single-crystal elasticity. Previous works have considered the reliability of elasticity information obtained via the RUS method when the material is of isotropic or cubic symmetry, and this work extends these efforts to materials with hexagonal symmetry, such as titanium di-boride. The reliability of elasticity information obtained by RUS is evaluated by Sobol Analysis and by close examination of the stiffness-frequency functionality. Findings …

Decentralized Narrowband And Wideband Spectrum Sensing With Correlated Observations, Xingjian Sun

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation evaluates the utility of several approaches to the design of good distributed sensing systems for both narrowband and wideband spectrum sensing problems with correlated sensor observations.

Topics On Applications Of Optimization Theories On Statistical Methodologies, Duc Anh Anh Doan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this dissertation, We show the results of our researches in statistical sampling, functional optimization, and methodology for partially observed Markov process (POMP) models. In statistical sampling, we introduce a p-generalized smoothing method that enables the Langevin-Monte Carlo method to generate a sample from a log concave distribution weakly smoothing potential function. For our optimization research, we introduce an accelerated inexact gradient (AIG) method. Combining the strengths while mitigating the weakness of its parent methods: gradient descent and Nesterov's accelerated gradient, AIG converges with excellent rates for both convex and non-convex optimization problems for smooth objective functions. Furthermore, we also …

The Middle To High School Transition: An Applied Research Study To Improve And Support High School Readiness In High-Poverty Schools, Robert Davis Ii

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The applied research study aimed to improve high school readiness for eighth-grade students transitioning to ninth-grade in high-poverty schools. Middle school educators are struggling to prepare students for ninth-grade without the proper transition support programs. This applied research study's framework was based on improving student performance, preventing academic achievement loss, addressing social-emotional learning, and informing students of operational procedures to prepare them for the high school environment. An action plan was developed and implemented in three phases to address each element of concern intentionally. Phase one consisted of Saturday Academy tutoring to improve student performance in reading and math. Implementation …

Decreasing Discipline Disparities Among African-American Males: An Applied Research Study On The Effects Of Developing Culturally Responsive Teaching Practices Among Teachers And Equipping Students With Added Supports, Reginald Maurice Herrington

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Schools and school leaders are charged to provide equitable educational opportunities and ensure the success for all students no matter their scholastic ability giving students access to an education that is culturally responsive. Despite this charge, African-American male students receive exclusionary punishment at disparaging rates which contributes to the widening achievement gap between white and black students. The purpose of this applied research study was to decrease the rate at which African-American males are referred to the office. This study analyzes the implementation of two elements: engaging teachers in a book study on culturally responsive teaching strategies and targeted counseling …

Academic Support Systems And College Readiness For Black Male Student Athletes, Derek Lovell King

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

High school athletics is a major aspect of today’s educational landscape. Sports generate revenue, galvanize communities, and provide opportunities for widespread exposure. For the black athlete, sports generally represent an opportunity to go to college. With the pressure of academic accountability, increased athletic competitiveness, and the impact of future prospects, high schools have to be innovative in order to optimize the academic experience, particularly for Black male athletes.

The impact of high school academic support systems, particularly their capacity to increase the college readiness of Black male athletes, has not been adequately examined. College GPA, college persistence rate, and college …

Building Teacher Capacity As A Pathway To Equity For First-Grade Spanish-Speaking English Learners: An Applied Research Study, Mary Greenlee Moak

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT The teaching of English Learners, one of the fastest-growing subgroups in American Public schools, is a task American classroom teachers are ill-equipped to handle. As students from a variety of language backgrounds move from metropolitan areas of the country to more rural locales educational leaders must equip teachers to integrate language acquisition with content instruction. Failure to do so will result in compounding learning gaps among English Learners as the language barrier prevents them from gaining content knowledge. Based in a Mississippi school with a growing population of English Learners comprising over a quarter of the school’s population, this …

Subcutaneous Delivery Of Albumin, Vy Nguyen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

An increasing number of protein drugs are used in the clinic to treat a broad range of diseases. However, because of their large molecular sizes and high hydrophilicity, protein drugs are not orally bioavailable, which commonly require intravenous, intramuscular or subcutaneous injection. Thermosensitive polymers have been widely investigated as in situ depots for sustained drug release delivered through subcutaneous route.Albumin is the most abundant proteins in bloodstream. It has long half-life (19 days in human) and plays important roles such as acting as carrier for fatty acids, amino acids, waste products and medical compounds. Albumin has been studied for decades …

Design And Optimization Of Alkali-Activated Binders For Construction Applications, Rami Khalil Al-Sughayer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research is focused on investigating the potential use of by-product waste and natural materials for improving alternative green cement mixes. The primary objective of this research is to expand the use of sustainable and more environmentally friendly cement alternatives, by enhancing their performance for construction applications. To activate the binding properties of binder under investigation, they have to be mixed with an alkaline solution in specific quantities. To broaden the use of these binders in the construction industry, parameters such as the effect of different chemical activators types and dosages, curing times and temperatures, processing techniques, and the chemical …

The Perceptions That Um First-Generation College Students Have Regarding The Impact Of Campus Engagement On Their Success At The Institution, Martin B. Fisher

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

First-generation students are often underprepared for college and have lower persistence rates (Balemian & Feng, 2013), and they face a unique set of challenges in their transition to college that many of their peers do not (Pelco, Bell, & Lockeman, 2014). Consistent with national statistics, data obtained from UM’s Office of Institutional Research, Effectiveness, and Planning indicate first-generation students at UM persist and graduate at lower rates than their peers whose parents have a bachelor’s degree.

There are many reasons why first-generation students have lower success rates, and, for some students, a lack of engagement is one of them (Pascarella, …

Acoustic Bessel And Vortex Beams: Forces And Refraction, Xudong Fan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Non-contact manipulation techniques or tweezers devices are invaluable for applications in physics, chemistry, biology, and engineering. Acoustic tweezers using either standing waves or focused beams have been investigated for more than a few decades with advantages of label-free operation, noninvasiveness, and biocompatibility when compared with the optical, magnetic, and electrical counterparts. Here, a new type of acoustic tweezers (i.e. acoustic tractors) is studied using acoustic Bessel and vortex beams that are able to pull objects against the beam's propagation over centimeter ranges. Stable acoustic tractors require transversely stable trapping in addition to axially negative pulling. Hence, the transverse forces acting …

Quantitative Effects Of Electrodialysis Membrane Fouling, John Malone

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

To meet the ever-increasing global demand for fresh water, research is constantly being conducted on separation and purification methods. Electrodialysis (ED) is one of the major technologies that seems able to make significant headway in combatting water shortages. As with all technologies, it is limited by certain aspects, one of those being membrane fouling. This research takes a look at the surprisingly unexamined phenomenon of membrane fouling in ED systems. The ED system studied was tested using conductivity probing, limiting current density analysis, and quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation analysis. Investigation of fouling effects commonly seen in ubiquitous ED systems …

Search For Cpt And Lorentz Invariance Violation In The Muon G-2 Experiment At Fermilab, Meghna Bhattacharya

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Muon g-2 experiment at Fermilab (E989) aims to measure the anomalous magnetic moment of the muon, $a_{\mu}= (g-2)/2$, to a groundbreaking precision of $140$ ppb, obtaining a near four-fold increase in precision over the previous experiment, E821, at the Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL). The value of $a_{\mu}$ from BNL currently differs from the Standard Model prediction by $\sim 3.7$ standard deviations, suggesting the potential for new physics and therefore, motivating a new experiment.Because the theory predicts this number with high precision, testing the g-factor through experiment provides a stringent test of the SM and can suggest physics beyond the …

The Role Of Acetylcholine In Attention And Lapses In Attention In Rats Using The Mode And Deviation From Mode Of Reaction Time Latency, Scott Lee Mitchell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is currently the neurodevelopmental disorder most commonly diagnosed in children in the United States, and one of the defining characteristics of ADHD is inattention. Inattention is marked by increased lapses in attention, and when assessed clinically, it has been highly correlated with reaction-time variability (RTV). Evidence from the human/clinical literature has shown an inherently higher RTV to be the primary quantitative indicator of an ADHD diagnosis. Reaction-time distributions are characterized by an asymmetrical rightward skew, and because of the prevalence of this presentation, it has been theorized that the distribution peak and skew represent separate phenomena, …

Forecasting Geotechnical Parameters From Electrical Resistivity And Seismic Wave Velocities Using Artificial Neural Network Models, Fatema Tuz Johora

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Geotechnical measurements of soil parameters used in the design of infrastructure provide information at a specific point of the ground. The use of limited point data may result in greater uncertainty and less reliability in design. Geophysical methods are non-invasive, less time-consuming, and provide continuous spatial information about the soil. However, geophysical information is not in terms of engineering parameters. Correlations between geotechnical parameters and geophysical parameters are needed to facilitate the use of geophysical information in geotechnical designs. The current research is focused on two geophysical methods; electrical resistivity (ER) and seismic wave velocity (S-wave and P-wave). Artificial neural …

From Goethe To Godel: Against The Language Of Thought Hypothesis, Berit Turnquist

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This paper re-examines the language of thought hypothesis by considering objections raised by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe against influential views about the relation of language and thought in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, such as those posited by Herder, Schleiermacher, Schlegel, and von Humboldt. Goethe’s Theory of Colors contains an instructive critique of the idea held by many of his contemporaries: that the bounds and limits of thought are linguistic in character. I argue that Goethe’s remarks anticipate later 20th-century challenges to the language of thought hypothesis regarding implicit cognition, such as Dennett’s “chess playing” example, as well …

Stratigraphy And Geochemistry Of Paleocene-Aged Bauxites From North Mississippi, Timothy Brendan Clark

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Bauxite is a heavily-mined aluminum ore that forms through the relative depletion of silica to aluminum. In North Mississippi, bauxite occurring within the Upper Midway and Lower Wilcox groups has been the subject of study for over a century. Despite the abundance and duration of research, controversy surrounds the subjects of bauxite genesis and economic value. The last detailed study of North Mississippi bauxite was in the 1980’s, so the goal of this project is to apply newly available technologies and modern hypotheses on bauxite formation to refine and obtain new data. Fieldwork observations yielded pisoliths, horizonation, and possible rhizoliths, …

Do Bears Prefer The Weak And The Downtrodden? The Effects Of The 52-Week Low And Financial Strength On Short-Seller Behavior, Christopher Alan Miller

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation investigates the effects of a company’s financial strength on short-seller behavior around a non-information-producing event. The distance of a stock price to its 52-week high or low does not provide fundamental information, but the price extremes serve as salient price points upon which investors anchor their expectations of future stock performance. Using a large sample of daily short sales data, I investigated the effects of both the proximity to the 52-week low and the financial strength of the underlying company on short-seller behavior. I found that short-selling volume increases as the price nears its 52-week low and that …

Polyester-Pamam “Janus-Type” Linear-Dendritic Blockopolymers (Ldbcs) As Next Generation Biomaterials, Indika Chandrasiri

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Nanomedicine is defined as the application of knowledge and tools of nanotechnology for disease treatment, diagnosis, monitoring, delivery, and sensing. Rapid advances in polymer chemistry and nanotechnology have led to an extensive development of polymeric-based therapeutic systems for nanomedical applications. Compared to traditional molecular-based therapies, polymers facilitate a higher level of versatility and functionality, such as simultaneous imaging and delivery. In particular, amphiphilic diblock copolymers and their self-assemblies have shown apparent success in nanomedicine owing to their ability to provide narrow molar mass distributions and highly ordered nanoscale multimolecular aggregates, including micelles and vesicles. However, engineering these polymeric materials to …

An Applied Research On Promoting Proficiency In Fourth-Grade Reading, Deirdre Huntley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This applied research study was conducted to promote proficiency in fourth-grade reading. There was a need for improvement in fourth-grade reading after receiving data from the school and state assessments. The study examined the implementation of specific reading and vocabulary strategies, student interventions, strengthening of teacher-student relationships, and encouraging student motivation to help students become proficient in understanding what the students were reading. Student diagnostic results and teacher interviews were utilized in this study. The findings revealed students were demonstrating advancement in reading comprehension. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the school building was closed in March of 2020 which impacted …

Prototypically American: The Influence Of Accent And Race On Hiring Evaluations, Tuong-Vy Cac Nguyen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In a globalized world, individuals are more likely to travel or migrate between countries; thus, we may encounter more individuals who speak with an accent that is unfamiliar. Accents can serve as a social cue that conveys information about the speakers’ background and national origin. It is a particularly important perceptual cue in the workplace because accented individuals are perceived to be lower in status and competence. The current study attempted to replicate prior findings on accents; disentangle race and accent; and extend the literature on accent by examining the target’s perceived prototypicality of Americanness. Across three studies (N = …

Analysis Of Bundle Protocol With Turbo Code, Babita Pradhan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Bundle protocol is one of the main protocols for data transfer in delay/disruption networking characterized by the long delay, frequent disruption, intermittent connectivity, andhigh error rates. Using a store and forward technique, bundle protocol stores the application data by dividing it into smaller bundles locally at each node and then forwards it to the next node when access is available. Usually, it operates as an overlay network by staying on top of any other networking architecture. As one of the main protocols for delay/disruption networking, many studies have analyzed its performance. This thesis analyzes the bundle protocol’s performance in terms …

Advancements Toward Sustainable Solar Fuel Production Utilizing Reductive Homogeneous Electro- And Photocatalysis, Hunter Pratt Shirley

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Molecular CO2 and H+ reductive catalysts, whether they be electro- or photocatalytic, have been shown to be possible routes of harnessing solar energy in a clean, renewable manner. There are few electrocatalysts operating at reasonable overpotentials to prove useful in artificial photosynthetic systems, and there are a number of environmental factors within these systems that have yet to be evaluated. Photo-driven catalysis is rare, difficult to control, and rarely provides high-value CO2 reduction products. I report herein an exceptionally low overpotential H+ reduction catalyst, a method of modulating electrocatalysts in-situ to improve performance, a first-of-its-kind mononuclear proton reduction photocatalyst, a …