Digital Commons Network^™

The Architecture And Dynamics Of Gene Regulatory Networks Directing Cell-Fate Choice During Murine Hematopoiesis, Joanna Handzlik

Theses and Dissertations

Mammals produce hundreds of billions of new blood cells every day througha process known as hematopoiesis. Hematopoiesis starts with stem cells that develop into all the different types of cells found in blood by changing their genome-wide gene expression. The remodeling of genome-wide gene expression can be primarily attributed to a special class of proteins called transcription factors (TFs) that can activate or repress other genes, including genes encoding TFs. TFs and their targets therefore form recurrent networks called gene regulatory networks (GRNs). GRNs are crucial during physiological developmental processes, such as hematopoiesis, while abnormalities in the regulatory interactions of …

Systems Modeling As A Means Of Building Accuate Mental Models Of Physiology Core Concepts In Undergraduate And Graduate Health Sciences Students, Michelle Murphy

Theses and Dissertations

Accurate medical and health sciences problem solving relies upon a solid foundation of basic sciences content knowledge, primarily physiology. Yet, due to its nature as a dynamic system of interconnected, networked, concepts, physiology is often difficult for students to master. The three studies in this dissertation explore the use of a cognitive tool, systems modeling, to facilitate the development of an accurate mental model of physiology content knowledge in undergraduate and graduate physiology students. In the first study, undergraduate physiology student participation within online asynchronous peer group systems modeling activities was associated with progressive improvement on multiple choice question answer …

Helping Students From Refugee Backgrounds Succeed In Higher Education Through Support Systems, Arinola Adebayo

Theses and Dissertations

Like every student enrolled in a higher education institution, students from refugee backgrounds are not only concerned about how to get into college, but how to connect with the support systems available to them on campus. The purpose of this research was to examine the social support systems available to college students from refugee backgrounds while on campus, the resources these students engaged in to keep them connected to college, and how they tapped into available resources to be successful in achieving their higher educational career and goals. Using qualitative methods, this research used an intrinsic-embedded, single-case design case study. …

Fracture Initiation And Propagation In Shale Formations With Anisotropic Toughness, Nourelhouda Benouadah

Theses and Dissertations

Hydraulic Fracturing (HF) is the prime technology for enhanced production from shale plays. Due to their laminations at different scales, shales exhibit transverse isotropic (TI) properties. In most cases the lamination planes are nearly horizontal in shales setting with the symmetric axes being vertical, therefore, shales are referred to as TI vertical (TIV) rocks. This influences significantly the initiation and propagation of the induced fracture during fracturing operation. For instance, accurate estimation of the fracture initiation pressure (FIP) and fracture morphology is essential to ensure optimum hydraulic fracturing design in unconventional reservoirs. However, majority of studies of HF modelling in …

Incorporating Worker Protections In Collective Bargaining Agreements As A Facilitator For Self-Reporting, Todd Heyne

Theses and Dissertations

The US airline industry relies on the willing participation of frontline employees to self-report safety hazards as part of an effective reporting culture. Current literature suggests fear of punitive actions as a barrier to self-reporting. Using a quantitative method, this study evaluated how employee protections from punitive actions incorporated into collective bargaining agreements (CBA) of Part 121 airline employees facilitates self-reporting. An Exploratory Factor Analysis suggests that Enhanced Reporting, Employee Protections, Roles and Responsibility, and Employee Engagement undergird self-reporting culture. All the factors had acceptable reliabilities and were significantly related to each other. Regression analysis suggested that Employee Protection was …

Modeling And Simulations Of Stress Shadow Effect On Multistage Hydraulic Fractures, Agustinus Zandy

Theses and Dissertations

Multistage hydraulic fracturing (MsHF) is a technique often combined with horizontal drilling for the extraction of oil or gas from unconventional plays. MsHF alters the magnitude and orientation of the principal stresses along the length of an induced fracture. This stress alteration in the vicinity of the hydraulic fracture is commonly called the stress shadow, and the shadow impacts the propagation of the subsequent fracture. This study utilized numerical simulations and theory-based analytical models to establish a relationship between hydraulic fracture and stress shadow development.

This study developed a methodology for optimizing hydraulic fracture spacing by considering the stress shadow …

Development Of A Piezo-Mechanical Battery, Caleb Aba-Onukaogu Aba-Onukaogu

Theses and Dissertations

The piezo-mechanical battery is designed to store energy in a flat spiral spring and harvest the kinetic energy of the unwinding spring using piezoelectric unimorph cantilever beams. The system, initially proposed on a micro scale, was designed to function on a macro scale. The power spring of the system was designed to deliver enough torque to run the system and provide enough force to the escapement mechanism to excite the cantilever beams. The gear system is designed as a compound epicyclic gear system with a gear ratio of 55:1. The cantilever beams were designed to act as springs as well …

The Experience Of Saudi Students Writing Academic English In Sex-Separated Classrooms, Rana Alsaadi

Theses and Dissertations

This is a qualitative research that investigates the experiences of undergraduate Saudi female and male students majoring in English at Taif University, Saudi Arabia. These students were part of different sections of a course that teaches academic English writing and research in an English as a Foreign Language context. These Saudi female and male students draw on their perceptions of three main points; First, how they experienced the academic English writing course in sex-separated classrooms. Second, how the current sex-separated classrooms influence their learning of English and how if this hypothetically change to mixed-sex classrooms their experiences in learning English …

Energy Harvesting & Wing Morphing Design Using Piezoelectric Macro Fiber Composites, Md Saifuddin Ahmed Atique

Theses and Dissertations

Energy harvesting from vibration sources was a very promising field of research throughout the last few decades among the engineers and scientist as considering the necessity of renewable/green energy for the welfare of mankind. Unused vibration energy exists in the surrounding or machineries was always tried to be utilized. Since then, by using piezoelectric transduction, researchers started to harvest the vibration energy. However, after the invention of piezo ceramics Macro Fiber Composites (MFC) by NASA, the research in this field augmented a lot due to its high efficiency to convert mechanical strain or vibration to useful electrical power and vice …

The Discovery And Investigation Of Jig (Cg14850): A Previously Uncharacterized Novel Drosophila Melanogaster Protein, Sayem Hoque Bhuiyan

Theses and Dissertations

Despite Drosophila being one of the most studied model organisms in the world of research, one-third of 14,000 protein-encoding genes that the Drosophila genome possesses code for proteins that are yet uncharacterized. While investigating some of these uncharacterized Drosophila proteins, we identified a scarce protein type–a protein localized in both mitochondria and nucleus. Proteins, dual-localized in mitochondria and nucleus, establish communication between these organelles. This type of dual-localized protein is among the rarest of proteins, which limits us from fully understanding the mito-nuclear communication mechanism. Here, we tell the story of Jig, which we discovered to be one of those …

Traditional And Technology-Enhanced Learning: Faculty Perspectives And Student Experiences And Satisfaction In An Art & Design Program During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Cynthia Margaret Boehm

Theses and Dissertations

Digital skills are essential in today’s digital age, which means that students require technology-enhanced skills in higher education to succeed in their future careers. In this study, faculty and students in an Art & Design (A&D) program at a Midwestern university were surveyed regarding their perspectives and experiences. During the COVID-19 pandemic, this university changed its teaching and learning strategy by offering courses online during the Fall 2020 and Spring 2021 semesters, where quarantine was mandatory. Still, the A&D program did not provide all courses online. This study included online surveys based on three constructs of quality of studio learning, …

Real-Time Machine Learning Models To Detect Cyber And Physical Anomalies In Power Systems, Zakaria El Mrabet

Theses and Dissertations

A Smart Grid is a cyber-physical system (CPS) that tightly integrates computation and networking with physical processes to provide reliable two-way communication between electricity companies and customers. However, the grid availability and integrity are constantly threatened by both physical faults and cyber-attacks which may have a detrimental socio-economic impact. The frequency of the faults and attacks is increasing every year due to the extreme weather events and strong reliance on the open internet architecture that is vulnerable to cyber-attacks. In May 2021, for instance, Colonial Pipeline, one of the largest pipeline operators in the U.S., transports refined gasoline and jet …

An Exploratory Analysis Of A Time Synchronization Protocol For Uas, Marcos Fernandez-Tous

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation provides a numerical analysis of a Receiver Only Synchronization (ROS) protocol which is proposed for use by Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) in Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations. The use of ROS protocols could reinforce current technologies that enable transmission over 5G cell networks, decreasing latency issues and enabling the incorporation of an increased number of UAS to the network, without loss of accuracy. A minimum squared error (MSE)-based accuracy of clock offset and clock skew estimations was obtained using the number of iterations and number of observations as independent parameters. Although the model converged after only …

An Evaluation Of The Relationships Between Resilient Safety Culture, Safety Risk Parameters, And Mindfulness In The International Air Show Community, Emmanouil "Manolis" Karachalios

Theses and Dissertations

A convergent mixed-methods approach with data triangulation was utilized to assess the strength of relationships between operational risk factors, hazardous attitude, and resilient safety culture when mediated by mindfulness in the international air show community. An anonymous online survey of respondents’ perceptions, semi-structured interviews of air show experts, focus-group on air show performers, field observation at an air show, and a documentary analysis of air show safety event data was used to collect data. The quantitative findings suggest a good fit of a hypothesized structural model showing the relationships between study variables using structural equation modeling (SEM). Mindfulness (MF) significantly …

A Novel Numerical Model For Transient Mixed-Flow Analysis In Pipe And Conduit Systems, David B. Khani

Theses and Dissertations

While responding to a wet weather flow event, stormwater pipe systems experience complex transient flow in which both open channel and pressurized flow regimes may coexist. The resulting transient flows may induce significant positive and negative pressure surges that can be intense enough to compromise the integrity of the system such as pipe rupture or flooding the streets and damage to properties. Unfortunately, available off-the-shelf software such as InfoWorks, Mike Urban, etc. are not comprehensive enough to capture all features of the resulting transient flows. When the elastic feature of the flow system becomes of significant importance, these models fail …

The Driving Forces Of Academic Integrity: A Survey Of Communication Disorder Students, Mary Ellen Huston

Theses and Dissertations

Academic dishonesty has been a pervasive problem in universities for decades, however, there has been limited research linking allied health students to specific cheating behaviors. For students studying to enter allied health fields, academic dishonesty is problematic as the health and safety of their clients is at risk. To date, there has been no research focused on the academic integrity of students enrolled in programs leading to a career in speech language pathology. This quantitative study explored the theories of reasoned action, neutralization, and motivation as they relate to academic dishonesty among SLP students. The study combined a slightly modified …

P&I Club Membership As Potential Incentivization For Adherence To Best Space Traffic Management Practices: A Maritime Analogue, Cristin M. Finnigan

Theses and Dissertations

It has been said that the space environment is becoming so accessible, we are at risk of depleting it as a resource, thereby risking society’s space-dependent functions. Law, regulations, policies, and guidelines exist to guide entities to act to preserve the space environment. However, best space traffic management (STM) practice implementation and regulatory compliance could be costly and resource-intensive, especially for a small business. Some entities may not undertake innovative space endeavors at all, or worse, ignore laws, regulations, policies, and guidelines. A question arises of how space actors could be persuaded to work toward meeting STM laws, regulations, policies, …

Inelastic Behavior Of Thin-Walled Circular Steel Tubular Columns Under Pushover And Cyclic Loading, Njiru J. Mwaura

Theses and Dissertations

Thin-walled circular steel tubular columns have been used as bridge piers widely around the globe because of their excellent seismic performance: ductility, strength, and energy dissipation capacity. This thesis investigates the inelastic behavior of thin-walled circular steel tubular columns with a uniform section and thin-walled circular steel columns with diaphragms. The loading protocol considered for this study is either pushover or cyclic lateral loading in the presence of a constant axial load. The effects of a pushover and cyclic lateral loading on the behavior of the thin-walled circular steel tubular bridge piers have been evaluated through analysis of failure mode, …

Effects Of Fractional Gravity On Human Gait, Elizabeth Nicole Smith

Theses and Dissertations

Only twelve humans have stepped on the Moon for a mere 80 hours. Further, noneof that Lunar exposure has been within the last 50 years. NASA’s Artemis Program recently announced that the next manned missions to the Moon will be scheduled for 2024 and 2025. With only a few years to prepare, it is pertinent that training for prospective astronauts reflects current scientific knowledge to ensure safety. In this study, the coordinative gait structures under 1.0g (Earth), as well as simulated 0.38g (Martian) and 0.17g (Lunar), were analyzed to discover critical changes in gait that may occur in these environments. …

An Evaluation Of The Relationships Between Safety Management Systems (Sms), Transformational Safety Leadership, Self-Efficacy, And Safety Performance Metrics In A 14 Code Of Federal Regulation (Cfr) Part 121 Airline: A Mediation Analysis, Robert John Waltz

Theses and Dissertations

A concurrent-embedded mixed-method triangulation design evaluated observed safety outcomes at a U.S. 14 Code of Federal Regulation (CFR) Part 121 air carrier. A previously validated model that measures Safety Management Systems (SMS process engagement and SMS policy implementation), transformational safety leadership, self-efficacy, safety motivation (mediator), and safety behaviors (safety compliance and safety participation) was assessed using structural equation modeling/path analysis. Semi-structured interviews of SMS subject-matter experts and safety leaders were used to explore the impact of SMS implementation. Factual data from the carrier was examined to provide convergent or divergent information regarding the other portions of the study. The results …

Voice Of The Voiceless: Alumni Of A Rural North Dakota School Respond To Traditional Urban Solutions For Rural Education, Thomas Warman

Theses and Dissertations

Equitable school district funding is a constant challenge for state legislatures. When budgets must be trimmed, the panacea for state legislatures has traditionally been approached strictly through the lens of economic efficiency. Since small rural schools typically have a greater per pupil cost, they are often forced into consolidating with nearby districts based on size alone. This research looked at how North Dakota should approach any changes to N.D. Cent. Code § 15.1-12 (n.d.), dealing with mandatory consolidation. Two theoretical frameworks were used in this research. The first, isomorphism, examined definitions of proper school district size and have been defined …

Synthesis And Properties Of Cyclobutane-1,2-Dicarboylic Acids And Their Derivatives From Substituted Cinnamic Acids, Houssein Saeid Amjaour

Theses and Dissertations

Dicarboxylic acids have extensive applications in many different fields such as polymers, metal–organic materials (MOMs), and pharmaceuticals. However, many of the dicarboxylic acids currently in use are derived from nonrenewable petroleum. Recently, cyclobutane-containing dicarboxylic acids CBDAs have shown promise as biomass-derived alternatives to these petroleum-based diacids. They can be readily prepared from a number of commercially available bio-based starting materials using clean, efficient [2+2] photocycloaddition. One group of chemicals which may be utilized in producing CBDAs are the derivatives of hydroxycinnamic acid; these compounds currently have applications ranging from polymers to pharmaceuticals to cosmetics to food additives. They can be …

The Impact Of Stress Dependent Permeability Alteration On Gas Based Eor In The Bakken Formation, Ailin Assady

Theses and Dissertations

Effective stress exerted on porous rocks can change and alter reservoir permeability accordingly during reservoir development. The permeability evolution under different reservoir statues will impact oil production and EOR design in the Bakken shale porous media. An accurate permeability model can improve capturing the fluid transport mechanism and create a reliable long-term dynamic fluid forecast via reservoir simulation. This research is focused on studying permeability alteration behavior under different pressure circumstances. The reservoir gradually loses its original pore pressure during production, increasing reservoir net effective stress. Therefore, a reduction in reservoir properties such as permeability or porosity can occur in …

Thermal Deposition Of Tin Onto Molybdenum Disulfide, Robert Boyd

Theses and Dissertations

Since the discovery of graphene and its various unique mechanical and electrical properties, the study of 2D materials has been at the forefront of material research. Transition Metal Dichalcogenides (TMDs) are often at the epicenter of research due to their chemically inert nature. In addition, their lack of dangling bonds and reliance on van der Walls interactions ease cleaning/exfoliation. Making them ideal candidates for various applications ranging from electronics to energy storage and lubrication. Sn has two allotropes α-Sn and β-Sn. α-Sn is a low-temperature phase, a semiconductor with sp hybridized covalent bonds. On the other hand, β-Sn is metallic …

Transformational And Executive Coaching Framework: Perceptions Of Elementary Principals, Clayton Dodson

Theses and Dissertations

Many successful Fortune 500 corporations have hired executive and transformational coaches to help their employees maximize their potential. This coaching framework has helped business executives explore the obstacles that are preventing their institutional growth. In many cases, workplace culture has become more positive, employee mental health has improved, retention has increased, and collaboration and stakeholder partnerships have flourished. This qualitative study’s intent was to explore the implementation of a coaching framework inspired by executive and transformational coaching in public elementary schools. Novice principals of three North Dakota elementary schools were selected as participants for this study. These principals had a …

A Development Of A General Heat Transfer Correlation For Boiling Two-Phase Flow Of Pure Ethanol Based On Experimental Datasets And Correlations, Mohamed Elfaham

Theses and Dissertations

Two-phase flow heat transfer has gained an extensive focus over the past decades in many industrial applications and thermal systems. Flow involving phase change due to boiling or condensation exhibits much higher heat transfer coefficient compared to single-phase flow when it is only sensible heat transfer involved. The knowledge of heat transfer coefficients and their parametric behaviors can be utilized to improve the accuracy of models used for designing and optimizing heat transfer equipment for more effective thermal management applications.In two-phase flow boiling heat transfer, the working fluid can a single pure fluid or a binary fluid mixture. In present …

The Effect Of Mineral Composition On Elastic Properties Of The Bakken Formation In The Williston Basin, North Dakota, John Albert Harju

Theses and Dissertations

Hydrocarbon production from tight oil and/or shale plays requires drilling horizontal wells with very long laterals and hydraulic fracturing operations to stimulate the reservoirs which have generally very low porosity and permeability. A great amount of experience has been accumulated over the past two decades in the North America from production of these types of reservoirs. The Bakken formation in North Dakota, is one of the largest tight oil producers in the U.S.A. and currently ranks as the second largest producer of oil in the nation. The Bakken formation is divided into the upper and lower shale members, which are …

Small Mammal Community Ecology In A Northern Grassland, Lynda Lafond

Theses and Dissertations

I studied grassland small mammal community ecology at UND’s Oakville Prairie, in Grand Forks County, North Dakota summers 2018-2021. Specifically, I was interested in small mammal richness and abundance, investigating their habitat associations, investigating their phenotypic variation, and understanding their diets. I trapped small mammals for five consecutive nights at the end of June to early July 2018 – 2021. I also measured plant community composition and structure metrics. Over the four years, I captured 985 individuals from 11 species. Species richness and abundance varied spatially and temporally across the site. I most frequently captured meadow voles (Microtus pennsylvanicus), mice …

The Role Of Tribal Funding In American Indian Postsecondary Success: Inquiry Into The Problem Of Practice, Delana Lynn Mclean

Theses and Dissertations

The rising costs of college attendance and the diminishing availability of viable funding sources cause students to incur debt in order to pursue postsecondary education. This dissertation in practice examines how one tribal education funding program contributed to the successful transition between high school and college for the enrolled members of the Mandan Hidatsa Arikara (MHA) Nation in North Dakota. I used a quantitative method to examine which pre-college and in-college characteristics were associated with the success outcomes, such as retention and academic achievement (as measured by the first-year college GPA) after the first year of transition to a postsecondary …

Effects Of Temperature And Feedstock Composition On Product Distribution Of Mixed Plastic Waste Pyrolysis, Zachary William Meduna

Theses and Dissertations

Plastic is one of the most widely used packaging materials; however, there are limited processes in place for recycling at the end of its life, especially for plastics 3-7 including: PVC, low-density polyethylene (LDPE), polypropylene (PP), and polystyrene (PS). Pyrolysis, or chemical recycling, has shown to be promising to break plastics down to fuels, monomers, or other chemicals. This has been shown to also make use of mixed plastic. This work studies the interactions during fast pyrolysis between commonly unrecyclable plastics. Chapter II investigates the interaction of PS and PP in fast pyrolysis at temperatures of 450, 500, and 550 …