Digital Commons Network^™

Probability Driven Heuristic Nets, Lynn Robert Carter

Dissertations and Theses

Let a probability driven switch be defined as a switch of three input paths and three output paths. The status of the input paths defines a probability for each output path (as to whether it will generate a signal or not.) One output path is linked to one input path, so the results of the switch at time t can affect the switch at time t+1. A switch so constructed can be defined (by the probabilities) to take on the function of the standard logic gates (AND, OR, …) A net constructed of these switches can be “taught” by …

Hermann Lietz And The Landerziehungsheime, John Daniel Flanagan

Dissertations and Theses

The subject of this thesis is Hermann Lietz and the Landerziehungsheime. Its purpose is to discover the sources of the Heime in Lietz's life and thought. It seeks to answer the basic question, "Why did Lietz become an educator and what were his motives in establishing the Landerziehungsheime?" The thesis is divided, generally, into three sections. The first attempts to isolate and reconstruct those events in Lietz's biography which were decisive in the shaping of the educator. The second part investigates certain aspects of the thought of J. G. Fichte, P. de Lagarde end R. Eucken, the three …

An Automatic Rinse Tank Controller For Industrial Applications, Aliasghar Emami

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis describes an automatic Rinse Tank Control System used in detection and removal of contaminating agents from industrial plating rinse tanks. It automatically monitors the purity of the rinse water in sixteen separate rinse tanks, and permits fresh water to enter the tanks only when the conductivity of the rinse water in each tank exceeds a predetermined level. Its use will result in large savings in consumption of fresh water and the subsequent reduction in discharge of effluent to the treatment plants.

Gutzkows Novelle Der Sadduzäer Von Amsterdam Verglichen Mit Seinem Drama Uriel Acosta Und Eine Englische Übersetzung Der Novelle, Clarice Solberg Kitteleson

Dissertations and Theses

The same theme of one unorthodox man opposing a self-appointed authoritative religious institution is interpreted in two different ways in two related works by Karl Friedrich Gutzkow: his Novelle, Der Sadduzaer von Amsterdam (1834), and in his drama, Uriel Acosta (1846). Both works fictionalize the life Uriel Acosta (1585-1640), an unorthodox Jew who fled the Spanish Inquisition in Portugal to the relatively tolerant country of Holland. Acosta's problems were not with the government of Holland, however, but with his own orthodox Jewish temple authorities. He opposed the written interpretations of the Talmud and attempted to question the very idea of …

Lingual Discrimination Of Two Normal-Speaking Populations, Janice Ellen Gould Nesbitt

Dissertations and Theses

The present investigation was undertaken to collect normative data on a teenage population and a young adult population in order to assess tongue sensitivity regarding the identification of various geometric shapes. The research, was conducted to answer the following questions:

1. Is there a significant difference between a teenage group and a young adult group regarding lingual discrimination?

2. What is the range and variability between and within the two groups?

3. Is the teenage group significantly better than the elementary school age group previously tested by Weiss (1973b)?

There were 50 normal-speaking subjects in the teenage group ranging in …

Infection Of Smallmouth Bass And Goldfish By Two Species Of Saprolegnia, Cheryl A. Mcginley

Dissertations and Theses

This study consisted of several experiments designed to compare the ability of two species of fungi, Saprolegnia ferax and S. parasitica to grow on two species of fish, smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieui) and goldfish (Carassius auratus), and to determine the criteria necessary for the development of these infections.

The results indicate that water in the fish tanks must be slightly acid (pH 6), warm (22°C), nonmoving, and that the fish must be wounded in order for fungal infection to occur. Cool water (18°C) and moving water, caused by aeration and filtration, are detrimental to fungal colony …

A Comparison Between Sources Of Student Anti-Hunting Sentiment And Wildlife Information Sources Of A Sample Of Oregon Adults, Ronald E. Shay

Dissertations and Theses

This study investigated the various sources of information utilized by a sample of the Oregon adult population to gain information and ideas about the wildlife resource. The results were compared to those of a study of college and university students and their sources of information that gave them anti-hunting attitudes.

The basic question posed was: What sources of information are most commonly utilized by a sample of Oregon’s population in obtaining ideas and information concerning the wildlife resource and do the proportions of various sources utilized compare with those indicated by college students as sources of anti-hunting sentiments?

Additional questions …

Effects Of The Nerve During The Dedifferentiative Phase Of Limb Regeneration In The Mexican Axolotl, Ambystoma Mexicanum, Roberta Gail Wald

Dissertations and Theses

It is known that nerves are particularly critical during the early or dedifferentiative phase of limb regeneration. During this period in the innervated limb, cells just proximal to the amputation surface dedifferentiate, migrate to the limb tip, and undergo mitosis. These processes give rise to a population of undifferentiated mesenchymatous cells capable of redifferentiating into the missing components of the newly forming regenerate. The consequences of denervation stand in stark contrast to the normal events occurring in the innervated limb, because neither a blastema nor a regenerate forms.

Results from this study indicate that during the early portion of the …

A Follow-Up Study Of Community Organization Concentrators, Hedy-Jo Huss Powell

Dissertations and Theses

This follow-up study of 1970-73 graduates of the Portland State University School of Social Work was aimed at identifying the community organization and social welfare planning skills that M.S.W.s are using in their current practice. The study sought information from graduates that could be useful in evaluating the current Social Welfare Planning concentration and planning future curriculum.

Two groups of graduates were surveyed utilizing a mailed questionnaire. The first group consisted of the universal sample of former students identified as community organization concentrators; the comparison group was a sample of graduates who had majored in direct services.

The study explored …

Partisan Voting In The Oregon Legislature, Tom Lee Mason

Dissertations and Theses

The thesis examines the role of partisanship in two sessions of the Oregon Legislature. Both the Oregon Senate and the Oregon House of Representatives were examined for the 56th (1971) and the 57th (1973) session. Indicies of partisanship, or party cohesion were developed for both parties in both houses during both sessions. Each legislator was also assigned an index of partisanship. The indicies of partisanship for the parties were the average percentage of the members of the two parties voting together on those issues which underwent "party votes." A party vote was defined as any vote on which the majority …

Negotiation Within The Therapist-Client Interview, Rhoda Elaine Estep

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis combines a theoretical perspective and a methodological technique in order to clarify the concept of negotiation. The theoretical perspective represents a merging of a formal analysis as suggested by Georg Simmel and Erving Goffman and an interactional emphasis upon reciprocity of actions as proposed by Herbert Blumer. Accordingly, a methodological scheme was constructed to examine negotiations in terms of their forms and content.

Differential Measurement Of A Language Concept Presented Via Video Tape Playback To First Grade Students, Richard Warren Trullinger

Dissertations and Theses

Educational television began in 1932 at the State University of Iowa. Until 1952, the potential of its contributions to education were not fully recognized. In 1952, however, the Federal Communication Commission created non-commercial television station. From that point in time, educational television has mushroomed.

This study tested the hypothesis: At least 80 percent of a given first grade population will respond accurately to the post-testing of a language concept, after the concept has been presented to them via a video tape playback using puppetry as the teaching method. In essence, the study was designed to determine whether or not an …

Survey Of Parental Attitudes Towards Health Services In The Beaverton Schools, Nancy M. King

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to collect and evaluate information on health services provided to children enrolled in the Beaverton School District. The primary areas of inquiry in the study were (1) parents attitudes concerning how existing programs have affected their children, (2) parents perceptions of needed and/or additional health services which could be provided by the school system, (3) parents attitudes toward budgetary decisions concerning possible changes and improvements in health services.

Development Of A Teacher Rating Instrument: Methodological Implications, Carole Gygi

Dissertations and Theses

In order to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the complexities which constitute an effective teacher and promote a positive learning climate, a field study methodology was employed to develop an evaluative instrument and to gain descriptive data.

For the purpose of developing an instrument to describe and measure effective teachers, 24 actual learning sessions (classes) were observed, extensive notes taken, and tape recordings were made in order to isolate and describe the behaviors which seemed critical to the situation being studied. This was done by observing the teacher as he taught and the learners while they learned. The teacher …

The Rate Of Return On The Investment In Registered Nurse Education As Related To The Supply Of Registered Nurses, Barbara Zuern

Dissertations and Theses

The focus of this research is the relationship between the supply of registered nurses and the rate of return on the educational investment to become a registered nurse. Is this rate of return a determining factor in the supply, past, present, and future? Since 98. 8 percent of all registered nurses are women, an integral part of this study is a survey of the data on women in the labor force.

The empirical data, statistical, was obtained from government sources and non-government associations, The American Nurses Association, The American Hospital Association, and the educational institutions. The data indicates the following: …

Danish Day Care As A Social Institution, Albert Sessions Belais, Ellane L. Kibel

Dissertations and Theses

A study of the social and cultural aspects of day care in Denmark. The thesis hypothesizes that experiences in the development of Danish day care are relevant to the future development of day care in the United States.

Interest in Danish day care was stimulated by the reports of Drs. Marsden and Mary Wagner (1970) which found Danish day care provided an intimate and innovative standard of care for young children.

Twenty centers of widely varied types were visited in Denmark. Information was gathered largely through unstructured interviews with child care staff and non-participant observation. Special attention was paid to …

The Background And Development Of The 1871 Korean-American Incident: A Case Study In Cultural Conflict, Robert Ray Swartout Jr.

Dissertations and Theses

This study is an attempt to combine the disciplines of Asian history and United States diplomatic history in analyzing the 1871 Korean-American Incident. The Incident revolves around the Low-Rodgers expedition to Korea, and the subsequent breakdown of peaceful negotiations into a military clash of arms.

To describe the Incident as merely another example of American "imperialism,'' or as a result of narrow-minded Korean isolationism, is to oversimplify its causes and miss the larger implications that can be learned from it. A basic premise of this paper is that the 1871 Incident is an example of East-West cultural conflict. As such, …

The Value Of Color Systems In Education, Shirley Jo Brehm

Dissertations and Theses

Color is with us everywhere, all the time. It is an integral part of our existence. Sensitivity to color and awareness of color's physical and psychological qualities is undeveloped in the normal, average human being. What can be done about this? Where can it be done? The answers to these two questions form the basis for this thesis. Color awareness as part of visual education and environmental sensitivity can be taught and should be taught in every educational institution. The key to BUCcessful instruction is informed, knowledgeable, color sensitive teachers and the exposure of students to workable color systems. Color …

Water Quality Within East Portland Terraces, Fouad Mohamed Tawfik

Dissertations and Theses

Groundwater from thirty-three wells which are randomly distributed within 42 square miles of the residential, agricultural and industrial area of East Portland Terraces have been analyzed. The area is moderately wet with an annual precipitation of about 37 inches. Residual and transported sediments from different sources, dominantly volcanic, comprise the subsurface lithology. The sedimentary units that were deposited by means of rivers and lakes have filled an original structural and erosional valley in the area. This relatively unconsolidated valley filling is about 900 feet of predominantly lenticular, stratified and cross-bedded lenses of clay, silt, sand, gravel, cobbles and boulders.

The …

Heat Transfer Across Carbon - Liquid Helium I Interface, Constantine Antonopoulos

Dissertations and Theses

Carbon samples were electrically heated while immersed in liquid helium I. Their temperature rise was observed on an oscilloscope as a function of the time after the onset of the electric current. There was no indication of the temperature overshoot previously reported for the case of bismuth in liquid helium.

Reasons are presented for the difference in behavior of carbon and bismuth.

An Investigation Of The Development Of The Phonemes /T/ And /K/ In The Speech Of Preschool Children, Glenn Douglas Weybright

Dissertations and Theses

Research regarding children's instrumental articulation development has provided the speech clinician with schedules of speech sound development. These developmental tables list ages when specific phonemes are mastered by normal children. Such schedules tend to give the impression that certain sounds must be developed before others can occur. Menyuk (1972) has expressed a similar point of view regarding phonemes /t/ and /k/. She has hypothesized:

1. that phoneme /t/ must develop before phoneme /k/; and
2. that sound element initial /t/ is mastered at an earlier age than initial /k/. The present investigation was designed to operationally test the validity of Menyuk's observations. …

The Digital Multifunction Power Measuring System, Ralph Warren Shoemaker

Dissertations and Theses

The Digital Multifunction Power Measuring System is the outgrowth of a project involving the design of a prototype precision Digital Watt Transducer for the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA). A prototype Digital Watt Transducer was built and tested since no other device of the desired accuracy was commercially available. Upon partial completion of the project, another Watt Transducer did become available which was essentially identical to our development. Since we could not economically compete with the manufacturer of these Watt Transducers, our project was stopped. Over a period of several months we thought about other ways to apply the experience gained …

Impact Of College Speech Classes On Listening Skills Of Students, Candice Piazza

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of college speech classes upon developing improved listening skills. More specifically it sought to determine the extent to which the students who took Speech 100 or 111 have acquired listening skills.

There has been considerable theorizing concerning listening and auding with only a scattering of experimentation. According to existing data, listening would appear to be a complex human behavior that is only partially understood. There are, however definite listener functions, listening conditions and variables that affect listening. Aspects of attention are also important when considering the occurrence or unoccurrence of …

Vibration Damping Characteristics Of Typical Harpsichord Strings, Jack Lee Simmons

Dissertations and Theses

Present-day builders of harpsichords disagree as to the use of iron or carbon-steel wire in their attempt to duplicate the tonal qualities of the early 16th century instruments. The variations in tone produced by vibrating iron and steel wires may be due, at least in part, to differences in their decay characteristics. A wire was set into vibration by placing a section in a magnetic field and passing a variable-frequency alternating current through it. A condition of resonance was established by appropriately selecting frequencies, lengths, and tensions that would simultaneously satisfy the relationship: fr = n/2L(T/p)1/2. Then measurements of decay …

Female Alcoholism: The Relationship Of Marital Status To Personality Disorganization, Julene B. Knapp

Dissertations and Theses

Research on the female alcoholic indicates that women drink for different reasons than men. Rather than being a product of role conflict as it is in males, female alcoholism is frequently precipitated by stress, particularly marital stress. For exploratory purposes a group of women seen at a public alcoholism treatment clinic were divided into four categories: 1) Non-alcoholic wives of alcoholic men; 2) alcoholic wives of non-alcoholic men; 3) single alcoholic women; 4) alcoholic wives of alcoholic men. These groups were compared. for amount of personality disorganization, using the total number of abnormal scales on the clinical profiles of the …

Curanderismo And Health Delivery Services, Jean Margaret Blaesser

Dissertations and Theses

This study explores and describes curanderismo (folk curing) and the cultural disease concepts of mollera caida, empacho, mal de ojo, and susto as researched in a rural Oregon community. Chicano cultural disease concepts and beliefs are then related to modern health delivery services, and a case is made for the need for cultural awareness, respect, and sensitivity on the part of medical personnel who deliver services. The approach of a curandera (curer) and a doctor are compared.

It is strongly stated that Chicanos' health beliefs and practices do not exist in isolation from the rest of their …

The Frequency Of Retroflex /R/ Production In Elementary School Children, Vicki Barna Wood

Dissertations and Theses

In articulation treatment and diagnosis, it is essential to possess a thorough knowledge of what is "normal" as well as what is "defective" articulation. The /r/ phoneme is one of the most frequently occurring and most commonly defective sounds. There are two different tongue positions for the /r/ phoneme described in the literature (retroflex and central hump), with many assumptions about which tongue position is "normal" or "most common." None of these assumptions, however, are based on empirical data.

The purpose of this study was to provide some normative data regarding which of the two tongue positions is most common …

An Investigation Of The Influence Of Dialectal Interferences On The Nsst Scores Obtained By Portland Black Children, Margaret Jeanne Callahan

Dissertations and Theses

The primary purpose of this study was to determine if dialectal interference as described by Walter Wolfram was exhibited by black children in Portland, Oregon when given the NSST by Laura Lee. This author was concerned with syntactical interferences on the expressive portion of this test.

A secondary purpose of this investigation was to provide suggested norms for differentiating children with language deficits from children with language differences.

Seventy black children with normal speech and language were selected from two public schools, a Head Start Center and a day care center. These children were between the ages of 3-0 to …

Colored Light: A Brief Study Of Stained Glass Windows, Including A Self-Guided Tour Of Stained Glass In West Portland, L. Jean Connors

Dissertations and Theses

The goal of the thesis was to make available a reference for the beginning appreciation of stained glass windows. It was designed for the person who has no prior experience in stained glass, and therefore the information is kept general and non-technical. A short history of stained glass is contained within the first section, and the second section is a self-guided tour of stained glass in West Portland.

The historical information was pieced together from the library resources of Portland State University. The subject itself is difficult, as extensive reference material and primary sources are simply not available.

The second …

A Comparison Of Two Systems Used In The Electro-Acoustic Evaluation Of Hearing Aids, Sallie Ann Frye

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study is to compare the Fonix Type 5000 Hearing Aid Test Set to the B&K system by testing the same hearing aids with both systems in order to determine whether there are any important differences between the measurements obtained using the two systems. Frequency response has been chosen as the measure on which the comparisons will be made.