Digital Commons Network^™

Limnological Assistance For Lake Mead National Recreation Area: Quarterly Report, Period Ending December 31, 2011, Margaret N. Rees

Limnological Studies

Project 1

• Technical assistance with the implementation of the Interagency Monitoring Action Plan (IMAP) for Quagga Mussels is ongoing; remaining analyses are underway with report delivery rescheduled for 05/2012.
• Data have been delivered for Veliger abundance and settlement at different depths of Lake Mead with report delivery re-scheduled for 05/2012.
• Growth of adult quagga mussels within Las Vegas Wash/Las Vegas Bay
• The Interagency Quagga Mussel Meeting was held on 11/17/2011; the next meeting is scheduled for 02/16/2011.

Project 2

• Appendix 7, an addition to the Long-term Limnological and Aquatic Resource Monitoring and Research Plan for Lakes Mead and Mohave, has …

Take Pride In America In Southern Nevada: Annual Progress Report, Period Covering January 1, 2011 - December 31, 2011, Margaret N. Rees

Anti-littering Programs

• A meeting of stakeholders across Nevada was held to explore the potential for statewide collaboration on litter and dumping issues.
• Website activity for the first three quarters of the year averaged 1,122 hits per month, with an average of 1,927 pages viewed per month.
• The team attended 12 community outreach events resulting in 2,154 direct contacts and 324 new mailing list records.
• The Take Pride in America (TPIA) in Southern Nevada completed a total of 41 volunteer events contributing a total of 10,779 volunteer hours.
• The TPIA team filed a no-cost extension to SNPLMA and received an extension until December …

Nevada Interagency Volunteer Program: Helping Hands Across Public Lands – Phase Ii: Quarterly Progress Report, Period Covering October 1, 2011 To December 31, 2011, Margaret N. Rees

Get Outdoors Nevada

• The number of records in the volunteer database decreased by 20.7% over the last quarter. The database now contains 7,072 records.
• Results show an average of 1,080 visits per month, and with an average of 2,328 pages viewed per month.
• Get Outdoors Nevada supported 22 volunteer events in a variety of ways. These events utilized 867 volunteers whom contributed approximately 3,774.5 hours of service.
• Two community outreach events were attended, resulting in 476 direct contacts with 50 names added to the database.
• The 7th Annual Volunteer Recognition Banquet was held on 11/5/11 with 156 volunteers in attendance.

Southern Nevada Agency Partnership Cultural Site Stewardship Program – Program Expansion And Steward Retention: Quarterly Progress Report, Period Ending December 31, 2011, Margaret N. Rees

Cultural Site Stewardship Program

• Team completes plans for stewardship “refresher courses”
• Annual stewardship recognition event held at Lake Mead
• On December 1, 2012, ICSST was absorbed as a sub-committee into the Southern Nevada Agency Partnership Cultural Committee.

Business Community Outreach: Exploration Of A New Service Role In An Academic Environment, Patrick Griffis, Sidney Lowe

Library Faculty Publications

A recent special issue of the Journal of Business & Finance Librarianship focusing on business librarianship and entrepreneurship includes many case studies detailing entrepreneurship outreach initiatives from academic libraries. The introductory article, "Entrepreneurship Outreach: A New Role for the Academic Business Librarian" by Karen MacDonald, outlines entrepreneurial outreach initiatives in the issue, stating that they “describe three very different approaches libraries have taken to align themselves with a key mission of the university – economic development” (MacDonald, 2010, p. 159). This chapter elaborates on this previous work in describing the exploration of a new role in business community outreach as …

Promoting Innovation In Hospitality Companies Through Human Resource Management Practices, Song Chang, Yaping Gong, Cass Shum

Hospitality Faculty Research

In this study, we investigate how hospitality companies can promote incremental and radical innovation through human resource management practices (i.e., selection and training). Data from 196 independent hotels and restaurants operating in the People’s Republic of China show that hiring multi-skilled core customer-contact employees and training core customer-contact employees for multiple skills both have a significant and positive effect on incremental and radical innovation among hotel and restaurant companies. The two human resource management practices are also found to have a negative joint impact on incremental but not radical innovation. The implications for promoting innovation in hospitality companies are discussed.

Energy-Based Analysis Of Utility Scale Hybrid Power Systems, Kwame Agyenim-Boateng

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The promise of large-scale use of renewables such as wind and solar for supplying electrical power is tempered by the sources' transient behavior and the impact this would have on the operation of the grid. Among the methods cited for addressing some of those concerns are exploring the complementary nature of solar and wind power generation, and through the use of supplemental energy storage. While the technology for the latter has not been proven to be economical on a large scale at the present time, some assessments of what magnitude is required can be made. An energy-based analysis of utility …

The Impact Of Age, Education, Political Knowledge And Political Context On Voter Turnout, Roy Edward Snyder Iii

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The following study will present an examination of factors that impact levels of voting activity among American citizens from 1972 through 2004. The subject of voter turnout has been thoroughly examined by political scientists over the years, as have aspects of youth voting and the influence of education. Many of the same variables presented by scholars in recent years will be employed in this study. However, these earlier studies tend to look only at individual level variables in explaining voter turnout. This study will contribute to a more complete understanding of voting through the analysis of individual, regional, and temporal …

Global And Specific Controls Of Protein Synthesis In Hibernators, Peipei Pan

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Mammalian hibernation is a highly dynamic physiological process that is composed of a series of torpor bouts, wherein hibernators oscillate between periods of torpor and interbout arousal. Although normally vital to homeostasis, many energetically consumptive processes such as translation or protein synthesis are virtually ceased during hibernation. Earlier studies indicated that protein synthesis had fallen to almost negligible levels. Cap-dependent initiation of translation is well regulated by eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4E (eIF4E) and its binding partner eIF4E-binding protein 1 (4E-BP1) when hibernators cycle in and out the torpor state. Herein, I investigated well-characterized regulatory mechanisms of global and specific …

The Effect Of Pre-Collaborative Activity Instruction On Self-Efficacy, Robert Ray Mattson

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Collaborative learning is increasing in popularity in education. This collaborative pedagogy is based on a significant body of research that shows positive learning gains. Additionally, given the nature of much of the information-age work, it is thought that such collaborative activity in school helps develop knowledge, skills and attitudes that will be beneficial to students in their post-college lives.

In spite of collaborative learning's increasing use and popularity, there is only limited research on how students feel about such methods and their level of confidence in their collaborative knowledge, skills and attitudes. Based on the current theories about self-efficacy, delineated …

Development Of A Simulation Tool For Analysis Of Freeway Crashes Due To Cell Phone Usage, Sourabh Sriom

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Research shows that drivers are susceptible to numerous distractions while driving which can be held responsible as the reason of a crash. Usage of cell phones, i.e. talking or texting while driving is considered one of the prominent distractions which causes a crash. This dissertation aims to study the number of crashes occurring on the freeways and their relation with the drivers of these cars using cell phones while they are driving. Since crashes occur relatively less frequently, the study of crashes is done using what is called the "rare event" theory. Java based simulations are done to model a …

Microbial Impacts On Endocrine Disrupting Contaminants: Las Vegas Wash And Lake Mead, Nevada, Susanna May Blunt

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

International concern over endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) has become heightened in recent years as more studies reveal their persistence in the environment and their detrimental effects on wildlife. However, little is known about the role of microorganisms in the fate and transport of these compounds in surface waters. Las Vegas Wash, a stream flowing into Lake Mead and fed primarily by treated wastewater effluent, provided a unique experimental system in which to study the role microorganisms play in the dispersal of these compounds in aquatic systems. Samples were collected from the Las Vegas Wash downstream of the Las Vegas Valley's …

Fall Prevention Training And Its Impact To Southern Nevada Construction Workers, Vedaspati Joshi

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Death and injury from falls are a long-standing and continuing problem in construction, responsible for at least a third of the construction deaths in the U.S. from 2004 to 2007. Each of those years, Nevada has exceeded the national percentage. Although 29 CFR 1926.503 sets forth Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)'s requirements that construction employers train employees exposed to fall hazards and document such training, the incidence of deaths and injuries from falls are an indicator that this training was not provided or else was not effective.

Conventional fall protection training is more narrowly focused on recognizing fall hazards …

Modeling Passive Solar Distillation Production In Las Vegas, Nevada, Noe I. Santos

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

A study has been performed to examine the effects of daily weather on the performance of commercial solar distillation basins (solar stills). The objectives of this study were to evaluate the long term performance of solar stills, to instrument two solar stills and record sub-hourly thermal properties, to evaluate existing heat transfer modeling methods for hourly production, and to create new models to predict daily production using experimental distillate production and local weather data by utilizing artificial neural networks, genetic algorithms, and multivariate regression. A system dynamics model was also created to determine the required basin area and storage volume …

Mountain Monitor-3rd Quarter 2011, Mark Muro, Kenan Fikri

Mountain Monitor Quarterly

Economic recovery in the Intermountain West’s major metropolitan areas edged forward in the third quarter of 2011, after idling for much of the year. Nationally, high technology and automotive-oriented metros showed the strongest signs of recovery; in the Intermountain West, manufacturing-intensive and technology-oriented metros had the strongest quarter. Employment and output grew in most metropolitan areas, and the unemployment rate fell throughout the region. At the same time, the housing market freefall came to an end—or at least paused—across most of the region, as home prices ticked upwards for the first time since the Monitor began tracking recession and recovery. …

Electrochemistry Of Pani/Metal Composites In Basic Solutions, Tamthinhan Quy

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Polyaniline (PANI) has been extensively investigated due to its unique conductivity, which is primarily dependent on the oxidation state of the material and the solution pH. PANI is an insulator when it is oxidized, and the solution pH exceeds four. Numerous attempts to extend PANI's conductivity to neutral and alkaline environments have been unsuccessful. However, our previous study has demonstrated that PANI/Pd composite is conductive and catalytically active in a basic solution, pH ∼ 12. Therefore, the conductivity and the electrochemical properties of PANI composites including PANI/Au, PANI/Pd and PANI/Pt were evaluated in basic solutions. The fundamental studies of PANI/metal …

Retrospective Investigation Of Course Content Evaluation By Students: A Survey Of Domestic Violence Education And Experience Among Current Unlv-Sdm Dental Students, Rhonda J. Everett

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The overall purpose of this research project is to survey experience and education of current dental students regarding domestic violence. Domestic violence has been recognized as one of our nation's most serious public health issues. Domestic violence can result in physical injury, psychological trauma, and sometimes death. Dentists can act as one of the first lines of intervention in recognizing common dental and facial trauma which may be associated with domestic violence victims including: broken teeth, facial bruising, and jaw fractures.

Current data suggest that education about domestic violence can help the dental professional in overcoming some of the barriers …

A Polymerase Chain Reaction Method For The Detection Of Selenomonas Noxia, Arthuro Mehretu

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In recent studies, periodontal health has been linked to being overweight and/or obese. Among common oral bacteria, Selenomonas noxia has been implicated in converting periodontal health to disease. Selenomonas spp. have also been found in gastric ulcers, and were misdiagnosed as Helicobacter -like organisms, but no further studies were conducted. The increasing clinical and epidemiological importance of S. noxia necessitates the development of a rapid detection method. In this study, a TaqMan 16S rRNA based real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) method was developed, optimized and evaluated for the rapid and specific detection of S. noxia . The 16S PCR assay …

Analysis Of The Morbidity And Mortality Of Severe Influenza Infection In Clark County, Nevada For The 2010--2011 Influenza Season, Kindra Maureen St. Jacques

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Influenza circulates in the community in a fairly predictable manner each year; however, throughout the duration of any influenza season, influenza strains have the ability to evolve through antigenic mutations, viral reassortment, development of anti-viral resistance, and alterations in virulence. These changes are likely to cause illness among the unimmunized and can result in severe illness or death. Therefore, it is especially important to closely monitor severe influenza-associated hospitalizations and deaths. The University of Nevada, Las Vegas in collaboration with the Southern Nevada Health District (SNHD), Office of Epidemiology (OOE) analyzed data from the severe hospitalized influenza morbidity and mortality …

Association Between Childhood Demographics And Blood Lead Screening---Nevada Kindergarten Health Survey 2010, Lina Zhang

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Lead, as a toxic substance, invades the human body, and gradually damages the organs. Oftentimes, elevated blood lead levels are not recognized until serious health issues are found. In the United States, approximately 250,000 children aged 1-5 years have elevated blood lead levels greater than 10 micrograms of lead per deciliter of blood (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2004).

However, there is no effective treatment for lead poisoning. Chelation can merely decrease the blood lead levels but cannot reverse the existing damage. To prevent and control childhood lead poisoning, many studies have been conducted to investigate the sources of …

Evaluation Of The Pilot Program, Pediatric Early Warning Sentinel Surveillance Program (Pewss), And Its Efficacy In Monitoring Pediatric Illness In Clark County, Nevada, Michelle Lee Lutman

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The influenza outbreak that occurred during 2009 stimulated the formation of several surveillance programs throughout the country. The majority monitor only influenza; however, there are several other circulating respiratory pathogens, especially within the pediatric community. These other respiratory pathogens cause a variety of illnesses, such as bronchitis, pneumonia, croup, etc. Prior research has provided the medical community with valuable information about respiratory illnesses, especially those which afflict pediatric patients. Areas of knowledge including seasonality, demographics, signs and symptoms, prevention measures, and pathogenicity, have been greatly expanded over the years. This information has been of tremendous help to the medical community …

Pain Tolerance And Thresholds In Women With Dyspareunia: Do Pain And Sex Primes Have Differential Effects?, Lea Thaler

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Dyspareunia, defined as recurrent pain in the genital/pelvic region during sexual intercourse, is one of the most common types of female sexual dysfunction, affecting approximately 15% of women between the ages of 18 and 24. Women with dyspareunia display similar cognitive and emotional styles evidenced in other chronic pain conditions (e.g. hypervigilance for pain information, catastrophization, and negative affect); however, dyspareunia is a unique pain disorder in that it directly involves sexual functioning. This pairing of pain and sex raises the issue of conditioning. Is it possible that because intercourse is painful for women with dyspareunia, the presentation of any …

Intragroup Separation Of Trivalent Lanthanides And Actinides For Neutron Capture Experiments In Stockpile Stewardship Sciences, Narek Gharibyan

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Knowledge of low-energy cross sections for stable and unstable nuclei in neutron-, γ- and ion induced reactions is important in both the simulation and radiochemistry diagnosis of nuclear device performance. This dissertation explores extraction chromatography and ion chromatography methods for the intragroup separation of trivalent actinides and lanthanides in support of cross section measurements for isotopes of interest. For trivalent actinides, americium (Am(III)) and curium (Cm(III)), separation is necessary to assist in experiments related to the measurement of neutron capture cross section for ²⁴¹ Am and the production of ^{242 m} Am/^242g Am isomeric ratio. Extraction chromatography resins …

Effect Of Toothbrush Abrasion On Frictional Resistance Of Aesthetic Orthodontic Archwires, Stephen Alexander Yamodis

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Fixed orthodontic appliances (braces) are one of the most widely used appliances to correct malocclusion, however many patients prefer less metal display. To meet this demand more esthetically pleasing brackets and archwires have been developed. These esthetic components are often clear, white or tooth colored. Coatings of various types are commonly used to produce an esthetic archwire. However, these coating materials tend to wear and degrade, which may cause binding and increased resistance to friction, thereby potentially reducing the efficiency of tooth movement. Therefore, in vitro testing of tooth brush abrasion on frictional resistance of various aesthetic archwires was tested. …

The American Homophilic School Of Composition, Rik Noyce

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

A small enclave of gay composers in New York, led by Aaron Copland (1900-1990) and Virgil Thomson (1896-1989), established a distinct twentieth-century musical sound that became synonymous with America. Copland and Thomson were prominent among a group of gifted gay musicians and conductors in New York in the 1930s, 40s and 50s. While perhaps not self-identifying as gay, as the term had not yet been coined, they did however acknowledge, honor, and support one another's lives as being homosexual. Is it possible that something as seemingly unrelated as sexual preference could, in fact, impact a musical style?

In this document, …

Modeling And Control Of A Flexible Ionic Polymer Metal Composite(Ipmc) Actuator For Underwater Propulsion, Shivakanth Gutta

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The goal of this research is to model and control the underwater vehicle propelled by IPMC actuator. IPMC consists of an ionic membrane sandwiched between two metallic electrodes. When an external voltage is applied, IPMC undergoes large deformation due to transport of ions. Due to its ability to work in aqueous environments, it can be used for developing small scale underwater vehicles.

First, Finite element approach is used to describe the dynamics of the both single and segmented IPMC actuator. In the approach presented, each element is attached with a local coordinate system that undergoes rigid body motion along with …

The Watchmaker Series, Christopher Michael Seelie

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The Watchmaker Series celebrates and inquires into time as a biproduct of consciousness and practices the application of this notion in poetry. The series begins with the numeral poems, all of which relate directly to the theoretical and polemical aspects. Along the way, other poems with individual titles are interspersed to reflect or redirect the abstract considerations to more concrete subjects. Gradually, as the series progresses, the interacting and recurring associations meld theory and practice into a compositional whole.

The central notion that contemporary poetry is not a machine made of words but rather, like the watch that gives itself …

Boundary Element Method (Bem) And Method Of Fundamental Solutions (Mfs) For The Boundary Value Problems Of The 2-D Laplace's Equation, Ermes Anthony Salgado-Ibarra

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In this thesis we study the solution of the two dimensional Laplace equation by the boundary Element method (BEM) and the method of fundamental solutions (MFS). Both the BEM and MFS used to solve boundary value problems involving the Laplace equation 2-D settings. Both methods rely on the use of fundamental solution of the Laplace's equation (the solution of Laplace's equation in the distributional sense). We will contrast and compare the results we get using the BEM with results we get using the MFS.

The Utilization And Effectiveness Of The Hesi E(Square) Exit Exam As A Graduation Requirement Toward Increasing Nclex-Rnrtm Pass Rates In Baccalaureate Nursing Programs, Debra Henline Sullivan

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Due to a desire to better prepare BSN students for the Nurse Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN^® ) and to increase first-time pass rates, nursing programs across the US are using predictive testing to implement policies that require students to pass a standardized exit exam to graduate (National League for Nursing, 2010). Evolve Learning Systems owned by Elsevier, Inc. offers such an exit exam named the HESI E ² , which recommends a benchmark score to predict success on the NCLEX-RN^® . To offset an expected decrease in NCLEX-RN^® pass rates due to recent changes …

A Case Study Of Organizational Change: College Restructuring In Response To Mandated Department Eliminations, Brandy Dyan Smith

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Faced with unprecedented budget cuts, Western University had implemented vertical cuts in the Spring of 2010 resulting in the elimination of two departments within their College of Education. Western University was not alone in its struggle. Institutions nationwide were coping with similar financial constraints, with freezes, consolidations, and eliminations becoming commonplace and threatening institutional quality.

The issue of how colleges and the leaders, groups, and individuals within them cope, process, and reorganize following eliminations has quickly gained importance, although there are few empirical studies to guide such changes. The existing literature on restructuring, particularly adaptability and change processes, has focused …