Digital Commons Network^™

Particle Image Velocimetry Investigation Of A Novel Structure Within A Turbulent Boundary Layer, Tyler Jesse Moore

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In the provided thesis, turbulent statistics over a novel additive surface structure are studied within a fully-developed turbulent channel flow at ReƬ ≈ 380. Experimental data is gathered in a purpose-built 3D-printed wind channel which allows for 2D Particle Image Velocimetry. The Multi Jet Fusion 3D-printed additive structure, consisting of two side walls and a top wall, is analyzed for its flow control capabilities. Potential desirable flow control outputs include localized flow acceleration, deceleration, and vortex generation. The proposed structure is configurable by manipulating the structure’s height and the angle of attack of the side and top walls. Heights of …

Tennessee's Mississippi: An Audio Documentary, Michelle Bright

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Tennessee’s Mississippi is a four-episode audio documentary preview of a future podcast in the making. It centers on Tennessee Williams’ Mississippi plays and stories and how they connect to the real cultural history of this state. Williams is known as an international playwright, and while much scholarship has been done on his work, very little has focused on the significance of Mississippi in creating a place identity for his characters for his most successful plays in the first twenty-five years of his career. This place identity is even more apparent when he begins to move away from using Mississippi in …

The Perceived Effects On The Motivation, Anxiety, And Online Language Learning Of Saudi Efl Learners During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Ali Hasan Alamry

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Although many restrictions initiated by the COVID-19 pandemic are no longer imposed, massive changes across the globe have impacted online language learning afterward. Technology infrastructure, students' and teachers' digital literacy, and proper distance learning pedagogies were among the challenges of online learning during the pandemic. Nevertheless, valuable lessons can be learned from the pandemic to better handle online language learning classes in the future. Globally, increasing attention in the literature has been directed toward the effects of the pandemic on L2 learners' different affective factors. Locally, this study focuses on the perceived impacts on Saudi EFL learners' motivation, anxiety, and …

Exploring The Perspectives Of Black Male Students At An Hbcu In Rural Mississippi And The Role Non-Cognitive Factors Within A First-Year Experience Program Play In Their Continued Enrollment, Billy J. Benson, Jr.

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Retention and graduation rates are declining nationwide but are exceptionally low for Black men. Extant research substantiates that various influences contribute to a student’s ability to persist to graduation. Apart from the positive impact of HBCUs on educational outcomes for Black students, empirical research highlights that enrollment, campus engagement, retention, success, and graduation are problematic (Palmer et al., 2013). Many factors—academic and non-cognitive—affect a student’s ability to persist to graduation (Bosco, 2021).

This problem of practice (PoP) explores the perspectives of Black male students at an HBCU in rural Mississippi and the role non-cognitive factors within a first-year experience program …

Formulation Design And Development For Extended-Release Drug Delivery System, Sheng Feng

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The drug delivery system enables the release of the active pharmaceutical ingredient to achieve a desired therapeutic response. Conventional, non-controlled drug delivery systems are unable to deliver the drug at a sustained rate which leads to poor bioavailability, fluctuations in plasma drug concentration, and potential side effects. The extended drug delivery system enables drug delivery at a sustained or predetermined rate to achieve maximum efficacy and safety. Different routes of drug administration, along with various extended-release dosage forms have been extensively developed such as oral delivery, parenteral delivery, transdermal delivery, ocular delivery, and tumor delivery among others. This dissertation developed …

Error And F -Divergence Analysis Of Generative Adversarial Network, Mahmud Hasan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this dissertation, the focus is to investigate the convergence rates of error and estimation bounds of various f-divergence metrics in the context of generative adversarial networks (GANs). The error convergence rate is developed and explained by a class of functions with the discriminator and generator neural networks. The new class of functions is uniformly bounded, VC type, with bounded envelope function and Vapnik–Chervonenkis (VC) dimension dimension which makes it possible to apply Talagrand inequality. A tight convergence rate is derived for the error of GAN after applying the Talagrand inequality and Borel-Cantelli lemma. The error bound is generalized for …

Campus Recreation Student Employee Professional Development Curriculum: Perceived Student Employee Outcomes, Amanda Alpert Jessee

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Kuh and colleagues (2008) use the term high-impact practices (HIPs) to describe co-curricular programs that are particularly effective in advancing student learning. The original list of HIPs does not include campus employment, which McClellan et al. (2018) argued should be added. According to the results from the 2019 NASPA survey reported by Burnside et al., recreational services is one of the top three areas in the number of student staff members. These student employees tend to come from a diverse academic background (Kampf & Teske, 2013) and may not be pursuing a future career within the recreation field. Campus recreation …

An Applied Research Study On Improving Special Education Identification And Support For Grades 3-6: Assessing The Impact Of The Tier 3 Process, Nickie Malone

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Addressing the urgent need for effective literacy instruction, especially for students with diverse learning needs, is paramount in today's educational landscape. This dissertation investigates the implementation and impact of the Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) framework, particularly the Tier 3 process, at AUES in grades 3-6. The study aims to shed light on the systemic gaps in special education identification and support, evolving pedagogical approaches, and the role of educators and institutions in shaping literacy outcomes.

Grounded in the principles of equity and inclusion, the MTSS framework emerges as a promising avenue for providing personalized support and instruction tailored to …

Listening To Black Holes Ring: High-Precision Ringdown Modelling, Lorena Magaña Zertuche

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

After decades of promise, gravitational waves from a binary black hole system were detected on September 14, 2015 by the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO). Since then, close to 100 new gravitational-wave detections, including those from neutron star and neutron star-black hole binaries, have been made jointly by the LIGO, Virgo, and KAGRA (LVK) collaboration. LIGO's fourth observing run (O4) has begun, and signals on the order of one per week are expected. This rate will only increase as third-generation ground-based detectors will be getting hundreds of thousands of gravitational-wave signals when they go online in the next decade. Moreover, …

Efficient Design Of Neural Network Hardware Accelerator For Enhanced Performance In Deep Learning Systems, Tamador Nadem Mohaidat

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Artificial intelligence (AI) hardware accelerator is an emerging research for several applications and domains. The hardware accelerator aims to provide high computational speed while retaining low cost and high learning performance. The main challenge is to design complex machine learning models on hardware with high performance. In this thesis, the aim is to develop the hardware implementation of perceptron within a neural network. Innovative hardware-based approaches are explored to optimize perceptron networks, enhancing accuracy, reliability, and fault tolerance while minimizing resource requirements and power consumption.

A thorough investigation into machine learning accelerators and associated challenges was initially conducted. The hardware …

Optimizing The Performance Of Polyimide And Polyetherimide Nanocomposites Against Atomic Oxygen Attack And/Or Hypervelocity Impact, Grace Rushing

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As humanity continues to push the boundaries of exploration beyond Earth, the need to develop materials that can withstand this harsh environment increases. Two types of materials were exposed to the low earth orbit (LEO) space environment on the International Space Station (ISS) for one year: (1) polyimide composites enhanced with polyhedral oligomeric silsequioxane (POSS) and (2) polyetherimide-graphene nanoplatelet (PEI-GNP) composites. Both exposed and non-exposed samples were characterized and compared, and the mass loss was calculated. The effects of the LEO environment, particularly atomic oxygen (AO), were investigated. X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), and digital microscopy …

Development Of Quercetin And Moxifloxacin Combination In-Situ Nanoemulgels For Wound Healing., Shravani Padhye

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The study aimed to develop an in-situ gel that could potentially be sprayed on the skin for faster and enhanced wound healing. Quercetin (QCT) is a bioflavonoid, which has potent anti-inflammatory properties and has shown enhanced wound closure along with good antimicrobial activity, particularly against Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) which typically infect a wound. Moxifloxacin Hydrochloride (MOX) is a broad-spectrum antibiotic that has topically shown activity against Methicillin Resistant S. aureus (MRSA) and, in combination with Quercetin, could provide better and quicker wound healing as compared to the current treatment available. QCT and MOX nanoemulsions …

The Relationship Between Sport Club Participation And Academic Success In Undergraduate Students At The University Of Mississippi, Gabrielle Sokol

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Degree attainment is a shared goal of college students, higher education institutions, and the larger society, as graduates have lower rates of unemployment, higher rates of civic engagement, pay higher taxes, and are able to better prepare future generations for academic success as compared to their counterparts (Museus et al., 2008). Additionally, institutions with higher retention rates have the chance to increase their reputation and may be presented as more prestigious to potential students and their families (Hagedorn, 2005).

Despite the clear incentives for all parties, every year many students, including those at the University of Mississippi, choose to leave …

Exploring A Link Between Expected Family Contribution And Continued Enrollment At Holmes Community College, Matthew Ryan Surrell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The challenges facing higher education institutions across this country continue to increase, becoming more and more complex with each passing semester. Higher education administrators and those who aspire to be such must constantly stay abreast of all potential adverse issues, but especially those that affect the educational success of our students. The importance of student success is invaluable to students and society, alike, as their educational achievements enable the growth of both social efficiency and social mobility. Therefore, higher education institutions and their administrations must constantly assess and attempt to mitigate the many challenges and barriers to these important accomplishments. …

Heterologous Expression, Isolation, And Metabolomic Profiling Of Myxobacteria To Explore Their Potential In Natural Product Biosynthesis, Nawal Mohamed Hamed Elsayed Shehata

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Myxobacteria are distinguished by their ability to produce a spectrum of natural products,positioning them as an active resource for therapeutic discovery. These products include metabolites with significant antibacterial, antifungal, cytotoxic, antiviral, and immunosuppressive properties. Current synthetic biology tools for the exploration of myxobacteria are not as advanced as those for the well-studied Streptomyces. This thesis presents an evolution of synthetic biology techniques specifically designed for the exploitation of myxobacteria in the realm of natural product discovery. Chapter One investigates the potential of myxobacteria to act as heterologous hosts due to their large genomes and their capacity for diverse biosynthetic processes. …

An Argument Against Positivist Separability, Nichalus Zoltan Vali

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

One of the most influential views associated with legal positivism is that of the separability thesis. Primarily associated with H.L.A Hart, this thesis is widely understood to be the view that there is no necessary connection between law and morality. However, John Gardner takes this to be a naïve interpretation of separability that fails to adequately characterize legal positivism and which Hart himself did not endorse. Instead, Hart and other legal positivists were committed to the view that whether a norm is legally valid depends on its sources (i.e., social facts such as official engagement with the norm) and not …

Atomistic Simulation Of Pfas And Graphene: Interactions For Water Applications, Bashar Moufeed Awawdeh

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The contamination of drinking water by per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS) is a global issue. PFAS have been widely utilized in a variety of applications, including water and stain-resistant coatings, fire suppression foams, cosmetics, paints, and adhesives. They have been detected in soils and rivers globally due to their widespread use and resistance to degradation. The strong C–F bonds of PFAS make them exceedingly stable and hard to remove. In order to remediate PFAS contamination in the environment, it is essential to develop selective adsorbent materials that can effectively capture a wide range of PFAS structures. On April 10, …

Explainable Ai For Neural Text Classification Models: Robustness And Knowledge Locality, Christopher Burger

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Powerful but complex models have seen extensive adoption within recent years due to their performance across a wide range of tasks. However, this effectiveness has come at the cost of a limited understanding of how exactly these models make their decisions. This lack of understanding has justifiably slowed integration of these models within domains where serious consequences can result due to error like medicine or finance. In response, the discipline of explainable AI (XAI) has arisen to provide justification for why these models work the way they do. One of the most prominent tools in XAI has been the local …

Cationic Charge-Shifting Polymers As Improved Vectors For Nucleic Acid Delivery, Alexander Fortenberry

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This work investigates the development and application of charge-shifting polycations for gene delivery, focusing on their synthesis, characterization, and applications for in vitro mRNA delivery. Utilizing poly(2-vinyl-4,4-dimethylazlactone) (PVDMA), this study explores modifications with various reactive handles, such as alcohol, thiol, and amine groups, to create cationic amide-, ester-, and thioester-functionalized polycations. These modifications aim to exploit the charge-shifting capabilities of the polycations to form stable polyplexes with nucleic acids, promoting the efficient intracellular release of the genetic cargo.Initial studies first examine the charge-shifting properties of PVDMA-based polycations under different pH and temperature conditions. This work highlights the potential of these …

Ecological And Evolutionary Ramifications Of Host-Parasite Interaction In Aquatic And Model Ecosystems, Akacia Halliday-Isaac

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Host-parasite interactions are ubiquitous and have negative risks and consequences on individual, population, and evolutionary scales. These risks and consequences include altered population densities, changes in interspecies interactions, and rapid changes in host phenotypes. In this thesis, I seek to understand the ecological and evolutionary ramifications of host-parasite interactions within ecosystems. To do this, I investigated the presence and environmental correlates of potential host-parasite interactions in a freshwater ecosystem and used a model ecosystem to explore how past host-parasite coevolution affects community assembly dynamics and future adaptation in the presence of new stressors. To examine the presence of potentially parasitic …

Rovibrational Characterization Of Astrochemically-Relevant Small Oxides, Olivia Ann Harwick

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Quantum chemical techniques can serve to unravel the chemical complexity in both the laboratory and astronomical observation. However, complete sets of spectral reference data for some molecules are often absent from the current chemical census, but modern quantum chemistry can provide full spectral characterization for nearly any small molecule of interest. This thesis provides such complete, high-level, and modern rovibrational information for a series of small molecules. More specifically, quartic force fields elucidate anharmonic vibrational frequencies and rotational constants for small, cyclic oxides, all of which contain either aluminum, silicon, or carbon. Such information facilitates definitive detection in observational, chemical …

Mindfulness And Mathematics: The Relationship Between A Mindful Teacher And Mathematics Intervention, Ave Mayeux

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Adolescents in American classrooms are currently required to fulfill multiple roles, making them particularly vulnerable to stress due to intense academic demands and social pressures. This stress can be particularly challenging for adolescents who struggle with stress, anxiety, depression, and/or self-regulation. Previous research indicates a positive correlation between mindfulness practices and reduced anxiety, improved social skills and interactions, enhanced academic performance, and better self-perception. This self-study explored the implementation of mindfulness exercises in a mathematics intervention classroom by adapting and creating appropriate resources, and facilitating mindfulness exercises suitable for adolescent students. Data in this self-inquiry study was generated through meticulous …

Performance Of A Selective Amplify-And-Forward Scheme For Two-Users With Two-Relays In Rayleigh Fading And Log-Normal Shadowing Channels, Mahdia Tahsin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Relays serve as virtual antennas in wireless networks, fostering spatial diversity between the source and destination to enhance coverage, signal quality, and network reliability. Among the various relay-assisted communication approaches, amplify-and-forward (AF) is widely favored for its reduced computational complexity. The selection of an optimal relay is crucial for maximizing network performance, constituting a significant challenge in wireless communication. Hence, optimal relay selection has emerged as a pivotal area of research. In this thesis, we investigate the potential benefits of implementing relay selection schemes in AF relay networks featuring two source-destination pairs and two relays. Our analysis focuses on two …

Acoustic Localization In Reverberant Environment, Xing Yang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The main goal of this dissertation is to develop algorithms to accurately locate and detect underwater oil leakages through sounds emitted by oil-induced bubbles recorded by passive hydrophones. These algorithms aim to create an early warning system to prevent or identify catastrophic oil spills from pipelines, wellheads, and seafloor seepage.

On Saturation Numbers Of Double Stars, Lei Zhong

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A graph G is H-saturated if G contains no copy of the graph H, but for any missing edge e of G, there exists a copy of H in G+e. The saturation number of H, denoted by sat(n, H), is the minimal number of edges among all H-saturated graphs with n vertices. The study of saturation number begins with a beautiful result presented by Erdös, Hajnal, and Moon [14] who calculated the saturation number of a complete graph along with the identification of the unique graph achieving this number.

Graphene-Based Multilayer Polymer Nanocomposite Systems For Force Protection Applications, Mohammad Mansourian Tabaei

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This work focuses on designing and optimizing a multilayer polymer system (MLPS) for force protection applications, consisting of a front layer, sublayer, and back layer. The front layer was developed using high-concentration graphene nanoplatelet (GNP)-enabled polymers, specifically (poly vinyl alcohol) PVA and (polyurea) PU, as alternatives to brittle ceramic layers. The sublayer was tailored using ABS-GNP composites as a replacement for the traditional Kevlar middle layer. In the development of the front layer, PVA-based nanocomposites were optimized with a specific dispersing agent to enhance mechanical and thermal properties. These nanocomposites demonstrated significant improvements in stiffness, storage modulus, and energy dissipation, …

"'This May Not Be War, But Rather Statesmanship': Sherman's March Through Griswoldville, Milledgeville, And Greater Savannah", Matthew Ryan Lempke

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation argues that four communities in Confederate Georgia visited by Union soldiers during Sherman’s March to the Sea reorients our understanding about the state’s continued ability to resist the United States military, the level and variations of destruction, the rationales and motivations behind targeted actions, the multiplicity of experiences among diverse participants, willing and unwilling alike, and of the campaign’s broader effectiveness. The first two communities, Griswoldville and Milledgeville, were indispensable locations that set in motion a coalescence of military and political setbacks from which Confederate Georgia did not recover. As the march progressed and entered coastal communities, the …

Effects Of Off-Season Fall-Winter Farm Field Flooding On Nitrogen Gas Production, Andrew Rosson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Increased nitrogen (N) fertilizer use and cultivation of N-fixing crops have dramatically increased agricultural N inputs to the global N cycle. Excess N on agricultural lands is highly susceptible to loss through runoff or atmospheric emissions, potentially as a greenhouse gas (GHG). Nitrous oxide (N2O), a GHG with a warming potential ~300 times that of carbon dioxide (CO2), primarily enters the atmosphere through denitrification, which converts bioavailable nitrate (NO3-) to inert nitrogen gas (N2), with N2O as an intermediate. Wetlands are crucial for de-nitrification and N regulation due to their wet, anoxic soils, but have declined worldwide, including substantial losses …

Perceived Linguistic And Non-Linguistic Barriers Facing Saudi Female Partners Learning English, Samah Mohamad Dulli

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The partners of the Saudi students who come to the United States on scholarships to earn a degree (Bachelor's, Master's, or Ph.D.) are eligible for full scholarships as well. However, most of them fail to proceed in earning a degree or fulfill the language proficiency requirement needed to join an academic degree program. This study surveys between 10 to 20 adult female partners of Saudi university students to elicit their opinions on how much English they think they will learn during their partner scholarship time in academic and non-academic settings. This study investigates the female partners of the Saudi degree …

Measurements Of Charge Parity Asymmetry In Λc+ → P+H+H−, Dinura Udayana Hetiiarachchi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis presents direct Charge-Parity asymmetry measurements in singly Cabibbo suppressed...