Digital Commons Network^™

Four Twentieth-Century Mass Ordinary Settings Surveyed Using The Dictates Of The Motu Proprio Of 1903 As A Stylistic Guide, Jonathan Candler Kilgore

Dissertations

In the first half of the twentieth century, major attempts at reform were occurring in music written for the Catholic Church. At the heart of this reform was the 1903 Motu Proprio of Pope St. Pius X. This document sought to bring clarity and focus to sacred music through limitation, as well as causing sacred music composers to make changes in their compositional methods. While still being modern, music had to conform to certain rules and regulations in order to be functional within the Catholic liturgy. The document also provided a great deal of detailed information regarding day-to-day occurrences within …

The Use Of Personality Assessments In Designing Environmental Enrichment For Garnett's Bushbabies (Otolemur Garnettii), Lauren Elizabeth Highfill

Dissertations

Recently the study of animal personality has become an important and credible topic of research and a number of studies have revealed personality traits in a variety of species. The consideration of individual animal personality traits is important for animal management and welfare. For example, ensuring inter-individual compatibility in group housing animals may serve to ensure the safety of the whole group. To date, no formal research has been conducted on whether the assessment of individual personality traits could be used as a tool for individualizing environmental enrichment interventions. The goal of environmental enrichment is to increase the rate of …

Physical Education Content Knowledge And Physical Activity Behaviors Of Mississippi High School Students, Christina Leigh Lumpkin Martin

Dissertations

The present study investigated physical education content knowledge, physical activity behaviors, and body mass indexes of 386 Mississippi ninth (n=236 ) and twelfth (n=150) grade students with a goal of establishing evidence-based needs to modify physical education curricula. Results of this study suggested that a significant, direct relationship did exist in the Assessment of Sub-disciplinary Knowledge in Physical Education: Exercise Physiology (ASK PE: EXP);(Ayers, 2004) scores and scores from the Modifiable Activity Questionnaire for Adolescents (M4<2^4);(Aaron & Kriska, 1997) for both ninth and twelfth grade students. Findings also suggested that physical education content knowledge (exercise physiology) is more likely to contribute to twelfth grade reported physical activity scores than ninth grade reported physical activity scores. However, ninth graders were more active than twelfth graders. This is possibly explained by the small difference (5%) in ASK PE: EXP scores between ninth (M ASK PE: EXP score = 52%, SD=.22) and twelfth graders (M ASKPE: EXP score = 57%, SD = .21). As a whole, results indicated that Mississippi ninth and twelfth grade students' average ASKPE: EXP score was lower (M = 53%, SD = .22) than students in 16 other states (M = 62%, SD = 7.65). Further, majority of Mississippi high school students are performing significantly below the established, research-based cutoff score of 62% (observed N below 62% = 236 and observed N above 62% = 150). This is notable, because findings also suggested that students who scored higher (M knowledge = 76%, SD = .08);(M activity = 8.6 hours/week, SD = 9.7) or above 62% on the ASK PE: EXP were more likely to be active during a weekly basis compared to those who scored lower (M knowledge = 39%, SD = .14);(M activity = 5.8 hours/week, SD = 9.8) or below a 62% on the ASK PE: EXP. With this noted, it was recommended that Mississippi high schools evaluate the current physical education programs, and strive to implement curricula that can provide students with the necessary knowledge and skills to make lifelong healthy decisions.

Gifted Education Exposure In Introductory Special Education Texts: Quantitative Text Content Analysis, Sandra Kay Hansen Wentworth

Dissertations

This present study was designed to examine and compare 10 introductory special education textbooks used in mandatory introductory special education courses. The percentage of text devoted to gifted education chapters in comparison to specific learning disabilities, behavior disorders, mental retardation, autism spectrum disorders, and speech/language/communication disorders was explored for statistically significant differences. Paired samples t tests were conducted to analyze the data. A statistically significant difference was found between the coverage of gifted education and autism spectrum disorders among the 10 examined texts. No other significant statistical findings were found between various exceptionalities among the 10 examined texts. The prevalence …

Knowledge-Based Analysis Of Genomic Expression Data By Using Different Machine Learning Algorithms For The Purpose Of Diagnostic, Prognostic Or Therapeutic Application, Venkata Jagan Mohan Thodima

Dissertations

With more and more biological information generated, the most pressing task of bioinformatics has become to analyze and interpret various types of data, including nucleotide and amino acid sequences, protein structures, gene expression profiling and so on. In this dissertation, we apply the data mining techniques of feature generation, feature selection, and feature integration with learning algorithms to tackle the problems of disease phenotype classification, clinical outcome and patient survival prediction from gene expression profiles.

We analyzed the effect of batch noise in microarray data on the performance of classification. Batchmatch, a batch adjusting algorithm based on double scaling method …

Exploring The Cognitive Underpinnings Of Word Retrieval Deficits In Dyslexia Using The Tip-Of-The-Tongue Paradigm, Sarah Margaret Hanly

Dissertations

Over the past thirty years a consensus has emerged that the word reading difficulties of dyslexic readers stem from deficits in phonological processing. One experimental paradigm that has provided support for this view is the finding that dyslexic readers demonstrate deficits in word retrieval from long term memory on picture naming tasks. Dyslexic readers are able to retrieve fewer words in their receptive vocabularies and are less accurate than normally developing readers. However, the conclusion that dyslexic readers? difficulties in picture naming are the consequence of deficits in phonological processing is inferential. The current study uses the tip-of-the-tongue (TOT) paradigm …

The Impact Of Gender Socialization On Women?S Learned Technological Helplessness And Its Andragogical Implications, Joy Elise Harris

Dissertations

This research investigated a proposed construct of learned technological helplessness (LTH) in female adult learners, which is believed to be impacted by socialization into traditional gender roles, teacher modeling, and age. A two-pronged approach was used to examine women?s attitudes and beliefs about their abilities to use technology as a learning and personal productivity tool. Participants were females, over age 18, on two campuses of a public Midwest research university. Prior to the primary research, a pilot study (n=204) was undertaken for the purpose of creating a teacher modeling instrument, which measured how teachers model the use of technology. The …

The Role Of Perceived Social Support And Cognitive Processing In Reports Of Personal Growth Following Bereavement, Sean M. Engelkemeyer

Dissertations

The current study tests models of personal growth in bereaved individuals (Hogan & Schmidt, 2002; Tedeschi & Calhoun, 2004) by examining the relationships between types of social support and growth following bereavement, as well as by assessing whether deliberate/reflective or automatic/intrusive cognitive processing of the loss mediates the relationship between social support and growth in sample of bereaved adults. A sample of 114 participants who had experienced the death of an immediate family member (spouse, child, parent, or sibling) within the past three years completed a series of self-report measures received by mail. Hypotheses that perceived emotional and advice/ guidance …

Does Institutional Capacity Matter? A Case Study Of The Zambian Forestry Department., Rosemary Fumpa Makano

Dissertations

Understanding why some organizations are more effective in their service delivery than others is a central discourse in both public administration and political organization. Scholars and practitioners all agree that the defining factor is institutional (state) capacity. Since the mid-1980s, deforestation in Zambia has been on the rise, especially in Protected Forest Areas, suggesting poor management by the Forestry Department, an institution mandated to manage these public lands. Ironically, despite the strategic position that forests hold in sustaining both the daily subsistence needs of over 90% of the Zambian population as well as the as the numerous industries that depend …

Systematics And Floral Evolution In The Plant Genus Garcinia (Clusiaceae), Patrick Wayne Sweeney

Dissertations

The pantropical genus Garcinia (Clusiaceae), a group comprised of more than 250 species of dioecious, trees and shrubs, is a common component of lowland tropical forests and is best known by the highly prized fruit of mangosteen (G. mangostana). The genus exhibits as extreme diversity of floral form as is found anywhere in angiosperms and there are many unresolved taxonomic issues surrounding the genus. To understand patterns of floral evolution within the group and to evaluate morphology-based classification schemes involving Garcinia and its relatives, relationships among a broad sample of Garcinia and close relatives were inferred by conducting Bayesian, parsimony, …

Community Ecology And Phylogeography Of Bird Assemblages In Arid Zones Of Northern Venezuela: Implications For The Conservation Of Restricted-Range Birds, Adriana Rodriguez-Ferraro

Dissertations

Aridlands of northern Venezuela are important from an ornithological perspective because of the occurrence of habitat specialist birds that depend exclusively on desert scrubs and are endemic to this region. Currently, long-term survival of habitat specialists is threatened by ongoing changes in vegetation but the effects of such changes on bird assemblages are unknown. The goal of this study was to characterize bird assemblages found in six arid zones in northern Venezuela at both ecological and genetic levels, and to generate information relevant for conservation planning. The study involved assessments of patterns of avian species richness, abundance, community composition and …

Sex Offender Assessment: Clinical Utility And Predictive Validity, Kristopher Lueron Clounch

Dissertations

The research addressing sex offender assessment and treatment is an ever-evolving science. However, very little research has addressed psychological typologies associated with various types of sex offenders and treatment engagement. The current study examined assessment data of four sex offender groups, defined by victim type, to determine if a typological difference exists between groups of (N = 583) rapists (n = 129), statutory offenders (n = 140), intrafamilial/ incest perpetrators (n = 152), and extrafamilial (n = 162). Secondly, the study determined if a specific battery of psychological measures can predict treatment completion (n = 377). We also hypothesized there …

Relation Of Family Functioning To Treatment Outcomes In Day And Residential Programs: A Clinical Study With Emotionally Disturbed Adolescents, Utpala Shanker

Dissertations

Residential and day facilities are important providers of treatment for seriously emotionally disturbed adolescents. The primary difference between the two types of treatment programs is that adolescents attending day treatment reside with their families while those in residential programs live at the treatment facility. Very few studies have addressed the relation of family functioning to treatment outcomes for adolescents. Furthermore, extant research has not investigated whether the relation of family functioning to treatment outcomes is different for adolescents in residential and day programs, This study proposed that adolescents from severely dysfunctional families at admission would have better outcomes in their …

The Stress Process Model And In-Home Respite For Caregivers Of Cognitively And Physically Impaired Older Adults, Lauren Clair Mensie

Dissertations

Common problems in the family caregiving respite outcome literature include little attention to in-home respite, lack of theoretical grounding, and low rates of respite utilization. This dissertation study utilized the predominant model of family caregiving stress, the Stress Process Model (Aneshensel et al., 1995; Pearlin et al., 1990), to (1) investigate the variables through which in-home respite impacts caregivers and to (2) investigate the factors that predict utilization of respite services. Participants (N = 74) were family caregivers receiving federally subsidized in-home respite. Results indicate that both prior hours of in-home respite services and respite time devoted to non-care related …

Towards Development Of A Fully Synthetic Conjugate Vaccine: Investigation Of Structural Analogs Of Streptococcus Pneumoniae Serogroup 6, Archana R. Parameswar

Dissertations

Involvement of complex glycostructures in a variety of damaging and healing processes has already been acknowledged by development of carbohydrate-based vaccines and therapeutics. The bacteria Streptococcus pneumoniae (SPn) have become one of the most frequent causes of pneumonia, bacteremia, and meningitis in the elderly, immunocompromised, and, especially, in young children. SPn has one of the largest public health and economic impacts amongst all bacterial infectious diseases. Over 2 million children die annually worldwide due to pneumonia, accounting for almost 20% of deaths under age five with more than half of these deaths attributed to SPn. Amongst over ninety elucidated SPn …

Synthesis Of Α-Hydroxy And Fluoro Phosphonates And Cyclic Ether-Containing Natural Products, Nongnuch Sutivisedsak

Dissertations

A number of important classes of natural product (eg. amphidinolide C, (-)-centrolobine, etc) contain common structural features of tetrahydrofurans and tetrahydropyrans. This study involved the development of stereoselective mothods for the synthesis of tetrahydrofurans and tetrahydropyrans including the application of allylic hydroxy phosphonates and their derivatives as chiral, non racemic building blocks for the synthesis of biological active molecules. The enantiomeric excess of non racemic α-hydroxy phosphonates and carbonate derivatives prepared via the asymmetric Pudovik reaction can be improved by kinetic resolution. Both chemical and enzyme catalysts were utilized in the kinetic resolution of phosphonates. Enantioselective acylation of a variety …

The Effect Of Active Site Mutations On The Homodimeric Behavior Of The Pvuii Restriction Endonuclease, Grigorios A. Papadakos

Dissertations

The PvuII restriction endonuclease, a homodimer of two 18 kDa subunits, belongs to the type II family of restriction enzymes. Located in the active site of PvuII, Tyrosine 94 has previously been shown to be involved in the metal ion binding by the enzyme. The profile of the Ca2+ dependence of the DNA binding to the Y94F variant is shown to be clearly biphasic. The application of a sequential binding model yielded a coupling energy (ΔGcoop) at -0.54 for the upper phase and -1.15 kcal/mole for the lower phase. The similar metal binding pattern between the Y94F and the WT …

Spatial And Temporal Dynamics Of Lekking Behavior And Female Mate Choice In The Blue-Crowned Manakin (Lepidothrix Coronata, Aves: Pipridae), Renata Duraes Ribeiro

Dissertations

In lekking species, males aggregate at display grounds (?leks?) that females visit to copulate. Lekking systems are non-resource-based and males vary widely in reproductive output. This dissertation investigates how spatial and temporal factors influence lekking dynamics and female mate choice in the blue-crowned manakin Lepidothrix coronata. The first chapter deals with spatial dynamics of lekking behavior, and investigates whether leks are formed by the establishment of males on sites of high female density (?hotspot hypothesis?). Predictive maps of female spatial distribution were built based on field data and contrasted to the lek distribution. Leks were located in sites where males …

Grassland Birds In Natural And Cultivated Grasslands In The Northern Campos Of Uruguay: Diversity Patterns, Responses To Vegetation Structure, And Nest Survival, Adrian Bruno Azpiroz

Dissertations

Grassland bird populations are declining in many regions of the world as a consequence of habitat modification but research efforts have been concentrated in North America and Europe. In the Neotropics, however, many aspects of grassland bird ecology remain virtually unexplored. The objective of this study was to examine the effects of habitat modification on the distribution, abundance, and reproductive success of grassland birds in the Northern Campos of Uruguay. The study focused on birds that inhabit four grassland habitats which differed in terms of agricultural management in the Northern Campos of Uruguay. First, distance sampling was used to characterize …

A Developmental, Phylogenetic And Taxonomic Study On The Moss Genus Taxithelium Mitt. (Pylaisiadelphaceae), Paulo Saraiva Camara

Dissertations

The family Sematophyllaceae is probably the most diverse Hypnales in the tropics and one of the most complex and taxonomically confused. This thesis comprises three parts: 1, a micromorphological study of papilla development in Taxithelium and relatives; 2, a phylogenetic study of Taxithelium; and 3, a revision of Taxithelium subgenus Vernieri. 1. I present data on the structure and development of leaf cell papillae in different Sematophyllaceae. Two kinds of papillae are recognized. One is dome-shaped to conical tapering to a firmly rounded apex (?conical?), whereas the other presents a more flaccid, baggy appearance, and is often flat-topped and wider …

Population Genetics Of Island Endemics: Neutral And Major Histocompatibility Loci, Jennifer Lynn Bollmer

Dissertations

Island archipelagoes are ideal for the study of microevolutionary forces due to their multiple, closely related but geographically disjunct populations. I used both neutral and major histocompatibility complex (MHC) loci to determine the population genetic structures of bird species endemic to the Galapagos Islands. MHC molecules recognize foreign pathogens in the body, and these loci are known for their high degree of genetic variability maintained by natural selection. Small island populations are predicted to have reduced genetic variability due to the effects of genetic drift; however, selection may be strong enough to prevent the loss of variability at MHC loci. …

The Detection Of Malingering On Measures Of Competency To Stand Trial: A Study Of Coached And Uncoached Simulators, Rachael Elizabeth Springman

Dissertations

Competency to stand trial evaluations serve as the most frequently requested type of forensic evaluation. Despite the court?s need for accurate and credible information, defendants referred for competency evaluations may be motivated to malinger incompetency in order to avoid trial and gain personal liberty (Rogers, Sewell, Grandjean, & Vitacco, 2002). Furthermore, motivated malingerers can obtain information about tests prior to evaluations, particularly from the Internet and their attorneys. Previous research has demonstrated that coaching on test-taking strategies helps malingerers avoid detection on psychological tests like the MMPI-2 (e.g., Storm & Graham, 2000), but no research has examined the effects of …

Mechanistic Studies Of Specific Dna Cleavage By Pvuii Restriction Endonuclease, Xie Fuqian

Dissertations

PvuII restriction endonuclease is a homodimeric protein which recognizes and cleaves the palindromic sequence (CAG?CTG) in the presence of Mg(II) ions. Starting with PvuII as a model system, pKa calculations with crystallographically defined metal ligated water are applied to PD?D/ExK motif metallonucleases in order to investigate the activation of nucleophile in metal dependent DNA hydrolysis. These results establish the electrostatic contributions of the metal ions and the conserved Lys in lowering water pKa. The calculated pKa values of metal ligands have been used to simulate the pH dependence of Mg(II) binding to PvuII. The bell shaped pH-rate profile is dissected …

A Study Of The Effectiveness Of A School District's Mentoring / Professional Development Plan For Beginning Teachers, Jason Sefrit

Dissertations

The purpose of the study of the mentoring I professional development program within the teaching profession was to determine the extent and perceived value of the existing formal mentoring program in the Fort Zumwalt School District. The study found that the district's mentoring and professional development program for new teachers is effective as perceived by both beginning teachers and their administrators. The instrument used in this study was a survey designed by the District and distributed to beginning teachers who finished their first year of teaching and the formal mentor program during the 2002-2003 through the 2006-2007 school years. Surveys …

A Study Of The Effectiveness Of A School District's Mentoring / Professional Development Plan For Beginning Teachers, Kim Carter

Dissertations

The purpose of the study of the mentoring / professional development program within the teaching profession was to determine the extent and perceived value of the existing formal mentoring program in the Fort Zumwalt School District. The study found that the district's mentoring and professional development program for new teachers is effective as perceived by both beginning teachers and their administrators. The instrument used in this study was a survey designed by the District and distributed to beginning teachers who finished their first year of teaching and the formal mentor program during the 2002-2003 through the 2006-2007 school years. Surveys …

Transformations With Tai Chi: The Experience Of Community-Dwelling Tai Chi Practitioners, Sunny Yim Alperson Phd

Dissertations

While Tai Chi practice has dramatically increased across the U.S., its mechanism is unknown, and overall understanding of the phenomenon is lacking. The purpose of this study was to explore the experience of community-dwelling Tai Chi practitioners through a qualitative study, detailing its social and personal appeal, the reasons for their continued involvement, its symbolic meanings, and its impact on their lives. Utilizing the grounded theory method and dimensional analysis, in-depth interview data from 23 practitioners, aged 49-82 were audio-recorded, transcribed, coded and analyzed to derive a grounded theory. A theoretical model, transformation with moving meditation was developed, reflecting the …

Spirituality And Symptom Self Management Of Osteoarthritis, Lois M. Kannan Phd

Dissertations

Healthcare providers need to identify holistic self-care techniques that are endorsed by patients as effective strategies for symptom management of osteoarthritis, which is the single most common cause of disability in older adults. Research in this area may direct the development of interventions to ensure that older adults are afforded every opportunity to remain active and productive, with an improved health related quality of life, despite age related musculoskeletal conditions. The purpose of this study was to describe the relationships among symptom experience, symptom management, and symptom outcome based on spiritual well-being. A quantitative, descriptive, correlational, and noninterventional study design, …

Academic Writing And The Pedagogical Practices Of Effective Teachers, Thomas Devere Wolsey Edd

Dissertations

Composition, particularly when academic register is required, is a complex task. Because cognitive flexibility theory explains how humans can spontaneously restructure knowledge and adapt to situational demands, it is ideally suited to the ill-structured domain of transactional writing. Global aspects related to paragraph and whole-text structure and local operations related to word and sentence-level features define academic writing. A mixed-methods design used quantitative methods for investigation of five corpora of 10th grade students' work. Qualitative methods were used to explore the means teachers used in promoting academic writing and the interactions they intended to promote via teaching cues, including prompts. …

Reproductive And Social Dynamics Of A Lek Breeding Bird, Thomas Brandt Ryder

Dissertations

Sociality and the unequal apportionment of reproductive success among social individuals is a common characteristic of many vertebrate taxa. To date, our understanding of what factors drive high variance in reproductive success (i.e., intra vs. inter-sexual selection) and which male attributes contribute to that variance, are still fragmentary for most species. Moreover, how social structure interacts with individual behavior and fitness remains understudied despite its potential importance to the evolution of cooperation. This dissertation research focused on understanding this complex synergistic interplay between social and reproductive dynamics in a lek-breeding bird, the wire-tailed manakin. The first chapter examines the complex …

Essential Novice Nurse Educator Role Competencies And Qualifications To Teach Ina Pre-Licensure Registered Nurse Education Program, Kathleen A. Poindexter

Dissertations

Expert nurse clinicians who are transitioning into academic positions after successful clinical careers often find they are unprepared to assume their new educator roles. While nursing clinical expertise may be a necessary expectation, the knowledge is not sufficient to assume a nurse educator position. Novice nurse educators prepared with the essential qualifications and competencies associated with the specialty role of a nurse educator will be better able to transition into their new academic roles. This study identified essential entry-level nurse educators' competencies and qualifications as reported by nursing administrators of accredited pre-licensure nursing programs across the United States.

This study …