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Medication Expenditure And Resource Utilization Among Patients With Musculoskeletal Disorders: Analysis Of 2007 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey Data, Nipun Atreja

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Objective: To estimate the national prevalence and direct incremental expenditures of musculoskeletal disorders (MSD's) using the 2007 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey data.

Methods: A retrospective database analysis was conducted and individuals with MSD's (ICD-9-CM codes 274.00; 710.00-738.00) were identified. Dependent variables were total health care and other service category expenditures. The study utilized descriptive and regression analyses.

Results: In 2007, the national prevalence of MSD's was 33 million with incremental costs of $886.49 per person. The inpatient expenditures ($33,461.85) were the highest cost component in MSD's and the predictors of total health care expenditures were age, marital status, and presence …

Rooftop Gardening In An Urban Setting: Impacts And Implications, Lisa Barreiro

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Research on green roofs has focused on grasses, sedums, and forbs. The aims of this thesis were to determine the potential of rooftop gardens (RTGs) in an urban setting to reduce local levels of CO2, remediate storm water runoff, and provide boutique vegetables for a restaurant. The garden roof footprint was 238 ft2, with 14% covered by vegetated boxes. The soil mixture used had 96% absorbency with 54.12 gallons of the 55 gallons of precipitation that fell within the rain catcher boxes absorbed. Total biomass production was 37.98 Kg of wet biomass and 5.04 Kg of dry biomass. The amount …

The Impact Of Participation In A Secondary School-Based Mentoring Program On Urban Females After High School Graduation, Sandra Lee Wesolowski

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

As thoughts of the future weigh heavily on many adolescents' minds, the at-risk urban adolescent female are at an especially critical point; every decision she makes on a daily basis has the potential to affect the rest of her life (Way, 1995). However, secondary school-based mentoring programs can provide the modality to intervene with at-risk urban adolescent females to increase the likelihood of success both while in high school and after high school graduation.

This study is a phenomonologically-oriented qualitative study that asks the question: What is the impact of participation in a secondary school-based mentoring program on the lives …

Chromate Reduction By Desulfovibrio Desulfuricans Atcc 27774, Ning Zhang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Chromium has been used extensively in the industry process of metal refinishing and electroplating. It is also a byproduct of the processing of fissionable materials at United States Department of Energy facilities. Chromate (Cr (VI)) is soluble and readily absorbed by cells, while the reduced form of chromium, Cr (III), is insoluble. Thus means of reducing Cr (VI) to Cr (III) in the environment is a potential means of remediation. Desulfovibrio desulfuricans strain 27774 is a sulfate reducing bacterium that can reduce Cr (VI). It also can respire nitrate to ammonia. As some sites of chromium contamination also contain high …

Synthesis Of Furo[2,3-D]Pyrimidines, Thieno[2,3- D]Pyrimidines, Pyrrolo[2,3-D]Pyrimidines As Classical And Nonclassical Antifolates, Receptor Tyrosine Kinase (Rtk) Inhibitors And Antimitotic Agents, Xin Zhang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

An introduction, background and research progress in the areas of antifolates, receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) inhbitors and anti mitotic agents has been discussed. Thymidylate synthase (TS), dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) and glycinamide ribonucleotide formyltransferase (GARFTase) are important folate dependent enzymes that are targets for cancer chemotherapy and the treatment of infectious diseases. Classical antifolates, in most cases, are substrates for folypoly - γ - glutamate synthase (FPGS) and rely on folate transporter systems to enter cells. As a part of this study, twenty - eight compounds were designed on the basis of existing clinically active compounds and crystal structures, synthesized and …

Synthesis Of Bicyclic Thieno[2,3-D]Pyrimidines, Tricyclic Thieno[2,3-D]Pyrimidines And Thieno[3,2-D]Pyrimidines As Classical And Nonclassical Antifolates, Xilin Zhou

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

An introduction, background and research progress in the areas of antifolates and antimitotic agents has been reviewed and discussed. Thymidylate synthase (TS), dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) and glycinamide ribonucleotide formyltransferase (GARFTase) are important folate dependent enzymes that are targets for cancer chemotherapy and the treatment of infectious diseases. As a part of this study, thirty-five novel compounds were designed and synthesized on the basis of existing clinically active compounds and their crystal structures. These compounds were synthesized and evaluated as single and/or muliple targeted classical and nonclassical antifolates to decrease toxicity and improve the antitumor activity and selectivity of existing therapeutic …

An Exploration Of Secondary Science Grade Teachers' Written Artifacts About Their Experiences With An Online Professional Development In Reading Research And Instruction: A Grounded Theory Study, Carmen Woodhall

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Classroom teachers deal with numerous pressures in their classrooms including students’ difficulty with reading at the middle and high school levels. Often, teachers can identify the problems, but are often unable to rectify them because of a lack of understanding and support in incorporating reading as part of their content area instruction. This research was conducted to investigate the impact of a sustained, online reading professional development on the teaching practice of middle school and high school science teachers who took the 14-week course. This grounded theory research used the reflective assignment, a comprehensive, 10-week, job-embedded assignment of 62 science …

Experimental And Numerical Analysis Of Nano-Enhanced Polymer Coated Steel Plates Subjected To Ballistic Loading, Miles Coleman Fowler

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The following is a summary of research for a portion of the project titled Nano-Enhanced and Bio-Inspired Composite Materials for Mitigation and Protection of TIH Railcars and Stationary Tanks Against High Power Impact. This research investigated several nano-enhanced polymers for their suitability in high-speed impact protection applications. The polymers were tested mechanically to find ideal nano-particle additive percentages then coated onto steel substrates. These coated substrates were impacted using 0.50-caliber projectiles in order to find the ballistic limit (V50) for each combination. Computer modeling in ANSYS AUTODYN was undertaken to calculate a numerical ballistic limit for each plate configuration. The …

Temporal And Spatial Assessment Of Pahs In Water, Sediment, And Oysters As A Result Of The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, Meghan Christina Dailey

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

On April 20, 2010, BP's Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded leaking over 200 million gallons of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico for 84 days. Exposure to oil-associated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the water and sediment could severely impact the aquatic organisms inhabiting the Gulf of Mexico (i.e. developmental defects, reproductive effects, death, etc.). Therefore, water, sediment and oyster, Crassostrea virginica, samples were collected approximately bimonthly between May 26 and November 30, 2010 from multiple sites along the Gulf Coast, namely, two sites in Mobile Bay (Denton and Sand Reefs at 1 or 0.1 m above the bay …

Journey, Hosik Kim

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

My ceramic sculptures are about my story as well as the stories of all of us. Through these children that were born from clay, I find myself remembering and returning to the long journey that I have been walking all along. Memories are often the inspiration for my work, whether they are good or bad. In Korean, we call this [Special characters omitted]. I preserve these memories by carving into the surface of the clay, revealing a tattoo-like effect. I tried to make my own tattoos through my artwork because tattoos have a story and stay forever. My thesis speaks …

Donor-Sigma-Acceptor (D-Sigma-A) Molecules With Perylenebisimide Acceptors Having Alkyl Or Peg Swallowtails With Sulfur Or Hydroxyl Anchors: Synthesis And Applications In Langmuir-Blodgett Films, Single Molecule Spectroscopy (Sms), G-Quadruplex Studies And Passivation Of Gold Nanoparticles, Rajesh Kota

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Use of single molecules as electronic devices is presently considered a potential alternative to semiconductor-based nanoscale electronics. The ability to study a single molecule or a small group of molecules provides a great opportunity to build electronic devices at the molecular level. It is vital to understand the parameters that control the device properties such as molecular structure, conformation and arrangement at the surface. Ari Aviram and Mark A. Ratner proposed the construction of a single organic molecule as an organic rectifier. Donor-Sigma-Acceptor (D-?-A ) molecules, when arranged with a proper orientation as Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) films and fixed between two …

Mixing It Up: Multiple Symbiont Acquisition Strategies As An Adaptive Mechanism In The Coral Stylophora Pistillata, Kristen A. Byler

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In obligate symbioses, the host's survival relies on the successful acquisition and maintenance of symbionts, which can be transferred from parent to offspring via direct inheritance (vertical transmission) or acquired anew each generation from the environment (horizontal transmission). Vertical transmission ensures progeny acquire their obligate symbionts, but progeny encountering an environment that differs from that of their parent may be disadvantaged by hosting a suboptimal symbiont. Conversely, horizontal symbiont acquisition provides hosts the benefit of acquiring symbionts well suited to the prevailing environment, but progeny may fail to acquire their obligate symbionts. Here I show that the coral Stylophora pistillata …

Academic Engagement Through Experiential Learning: Building Transferable Skills Within Undergraduate Education, Shara Lee

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Presently, there is a national focus on the industry-benefitting skills developed through undergraduate education. The purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of an experiential learning course on building three ability-based transferable skills: communication, emotional intelligence, and professional qualities. These skills have been determined to be important components to the skill set of graduates intending to enter any career, including one within the hospitality industry. Results from an examination of three related instruments led to conclusions that an experiential learning course positively impacts self-perceived skill development among the three aforementioned skills as well as perception of overall performance. …

Engaging And Enacting Writing In First-Year Composition: Re-Imagining Student Self-Efficacy In Writing, Mary L. Tripp

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

According to educational theory, learning to write necessitates self-belief that one is capable of performing required tasks. This belief is called self-efficacy, a component of human agency. Students who enter First-Year Composition (FYC), are often unaware of the writing challenges that lie ahead, and many educational psychologists posit that self-efficacy beliefs are the most important factor in meeting these writing challenges. While socio-cognitive theory shapes views of self-efficacy in education literature, to date, measures of self-efficacy in writing have focused only on the individual cognitive beliefs as they influence writing performance outcomes. However, current research in writing studies as well …

Investigating Gender Differences In Student Preferences For And Achievement With Educational Games, Damon A. Regan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the choice behavior and achievement of male and female high school students who are given an option of taking a 36 week American History course in either a game-based format or a web-based format. It was hypothesized that (a) males would enroll more frequently in the game-based course than females, (b) there would be no significant difference in achievement between males and females in the game-based course or across course formats, and (c) there would be no significant interaction between gender and the selection of course format. The study consisted of a …

Affective Response Of African American And European American Students To Portrayals Of Cross-Racial Relationships On Television, Earl S. Mowatt

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Race is a potent discourse within the world of pop culture, particularly in television where viewers are witnessing more racial diversity in scripted shows. However, show creators must maintain standards that emphasize distinct social roles among characters in order to appeal to large heterogeneous audiences. These roles tend to be characterizations of racial stereotypes that often lead to biased opinions and inaccurate perceptions of minority groups. Previous studies detail that racial biases in media adversely shape public opinions about African Americans and depress the desire for racial integration. This seems somewhat confounding since the shift in programming towards racial diversity …

Genetic Engineering As Literary Praxis: A Study In Contemporary Literature, Taylor Evans

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis considers the understudied issue of genetic engineering as it has been deployed in the literature of the late 20th century. With reference to the concept of the enlightened gender hybridity of Cyborg theory and an eye to ecocritical implications, I read four texts: Joan Slonczewski's 1986 science fiction novel A Door Into Ocean, Octavia Butler's science fiction trilogy Lilith's Brood – originally released between 1987 and 1989 as Xenogenesis – Simon Mawer's 1997 literary novel Mendel's Dwarf, and the first two books in Margaret Atwood's speculative fiction MaddAddam series: 2003's Oryx and Crake and 2009's The Year Of …

A Production And Cost Modeling Methodology Of 2nd Generation Biofuel In The United States, David A. Poole

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The use of biofuels in the United States has increased dramatically in the last few years. The largest source of feedstock for ethanol to date has been corn. However, corn is also a vitally important food crop and is used commonly as feed for cattle and other livestock. To prevent further diversion of an important food crop to production of ethanol, there is great interest in developing commercial-scale technologies to make ethanol from non-food crops, or other suitable plant material. This is commonly referred to as biomass. A review is made of lignocellulosic sources being considered as feedstocks to produce …

The Next "Killer" Algae? Assessing And Mitigating Invasion Risk For Aquarium Strains Of The Marine Macroalgal Genus Chaetomorpha, Rachel Odom

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Biological invasions threaten the ecological integrity of natural ecosystems. Anthropogenic introductions of non-native species can displace native flora and fauna, altering community compositions and disrupting ecosystem services. One often-overlooked vector for such introductions is the release of aquarium organisms into aquatic ecosystems. Following detrimental aquarium-release invasions by the "killer alga" Caulerpa taxifolia, aquarium hobbyists and professions began promoting the use of other genera of macroalgae as "safe" alternatives. The most popular of these marine aquarium macroalgae, the genus Chaetomorpha, is analyzed here for invasion risk. Mitigation strategies are also evaluated. I found that the propensity for reproduction by vegetative fragmentation …

Factors Limiting Native Species Establishment On Former Agricultural Lands, Annalisa M. Weiler-Lazarz

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Restoration of abandoned, nonnative species-dominated agricultural lands provides opportunities for conserving declining shrubland and grassland ecosystems. Land-use legacies, such as elevated soil fertility and pH from agricultural amendments, often persist for years and can favor nonnative species at the expense of native species. Understanding the factors that limit native species establishment on abandoned agricultural lands can provide important insights for restoration and conservation of native species on human-modified lands. I conducted two field experiments on abandoned agricultural lands: a former pasture on Martha’s Vineyard, MA and a former citrus grove at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge (MINWR) in Titusville, FL. …

Amelioration Of Amyloid Burden In Advanced Human And Mouse Alzheimer's Disease Brains By Oral Delivery Of Myelin Basic Protein Bioencapsulated In Plant Cells, Neha Kohli

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

One of the pathological hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the amyloid plaque deposition in aging brains by aggregation of amyloid-β (Aβ) peptides. In this study, the effect of chloroplast derived myelin basic protein (MBP) fused with cholera toxin subunit B (CTB) was investigated in advanced diseased stage of human and mouse AD brains. The CTB-fusion protein in chloroplasts facilitates transmucosal delivery in the gut by the natural binding ability of CTB pentameric form with GM1 receptors on the intestinal epithelium. Further, bioencapsulation of the MBP within plant cells confers protection from enzymes and acids in the digestive system. Here, …

Identification Of Novel Antimalarial Scaffolds From Marine Natural Products, Bracken Roberts

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Malaria, the disease caused by Plasmodium sp., claims the lives of over 1 million people every year, with Plasmodium falciparum causing the highest morbidity. Rapidly acquiring drug resistance is threatening to exhaust our antimalarial drug arsenal and already requires the utilization of combination drug therapy in most cases. The global need for novel antimalarial chemical scaffolds has never been greater. Screening of natural product libraries is known to have higher hit rates than synthetic chemical libraries. This elevated hit rate is somewhat attributed to the greater biodiversity available in natural products. Marine life is the most biodiverse system on the …

A Comparative Investigation Of Career Readiness And Decidedness In First Year Stem Majoring Students Participating In A Stem Mentoring Program Imbedded In A Living-Learning Community With Focused Data On Female Stem Students, Nirmala Ramlakhan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Female mentoring success was investigated as an undergraduate intervention utilizing career development practices to reduce dysfunctional career thinking and STEM major retention in first year freshmen females within a living-learning community. Repeated measures MANOVAs and canonical correlations in the causal comparative research design evaluated mentoring’s influence on first year females. Male voluntary participants (n = 126) formulated the comparison group, and female voluntary participants (n = 75) filled the treatment group. Repeated measure multivariate analyses of variances compared differences between the interaction of mentoring and gender over time on dysfunctional career thinking using two assessments: Career Thoughts Inventory (CTI) and …

Influencing Students To Become Stewards Of The Earth's Ocean, Jenifer Trimble

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this action research study was to document 8th grade students' experiences at a residential marine learning facility as they discovered the interconnections between life on Earth and its dependency on ocean health. My goal was for students to take their new knowledge and share it with others in a quest to become educated and caring stewards of the Earth's ocean. Students in this study participated in open peer and instructor discussions, performed full and guided inquiry activities, and snorkeled among the shallow water habitats that transition from mangroves toward coral reefs to discover the interconnections among shallow …

A Comparison Of Aluminum And Iron-Based Coagulants For Treatment Of Surface Water In Sarasota County, Florida, David Yonge

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this research, five different coagulants were evaluated to determine their effectiveness at removing turbidity, color and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) from a surface water in Sarasota County, Florida. Bench-scale jar tests that simulated conventional coagulation, flocculation, and sedimentation processes were used. Iron-based coagulants (ferric chloride and ferric sulfate) and aluminum-based coagulants (aluminum sulfate, polyaluminum chloride (PACl) and aluminum chlorohydrate (ACH)) were used to treat a highly organic surface water supply (DOC ranging between 10 and 30 mg/L), known as the Cow Pen Slough, located within central Sarasota County, Florida. Isopleths depicting DOC and color removal efficiencies as a function …

Iron Molybdenum Cofactor: Catalyst In Dihydrogen Production And Nifen's Role In The Femo-Co Biosynthetic Pathway, Deborah Bolin Maxwell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Humankind’s tremendous industrial and technological progress over the last two centuries has been driven by the natural abundance and availability of fossil fuels. As those reserves deplete, the prudent course of action would be to develop other readily available fuel sources. Some research efforts using biomolecules involve the hydrogenases and nitrogenases with the goal of evolving dihydrogen. At the nitrogenase active site, the iron-molybdenum cofactor (FeMo-co) catalyzes the reduction of dinitrogen and protons to form ammonia and dihydrogen. Toward the goal of producing dihydrogen passively as an alternative fuel, a novel advanced material has been developed. CdSe nanoparticles complexed with …

Livelihoods Support Programs, Conservation Attitudes, And Tropical Biodiversity: An Evaluation Of Biocomplexity In Southeastern Ghana, Edem Kodzo Ekpe

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Human activities are a major driver of biodiversity degradation and loss, especially in tropical forest areas, where forest-fringe towns and villages depend on the forests for their livelihoods. In order to reduce threats that human activities pose to biodiversity, livelihoods support programs are employed as economic incentives for biodiversity conservation. These programs support the livelihoods activities of local communities, with the aim of triggering favorable attitudes and behaviors towards conservation, and ultimately reduce biodiversity degradation. Their effectiveness as conservation tools has not been evaluated. I investigated the effects of livelihoods programs on conservation attitudes and the consequent effects on biodiversity …

Relating Ancient Maya Land Use Legacies To The Contemporary Forest Of Caracol, Belize, Jessica N. Hightower

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Human land use legacies have significant and long lasting impacts across landscapes. However, investigating the impacts of ancient land use legacies ( > 400 years) remains problematic due to the difficulty in detecting ancient land uses, especially those beneath dense canopies. The city of Caracol, one of the most important Maya archaeological sites in Belize, was abandoned after the collapse of the Maya civilization (ca. A.D. 900), leaving behind numerous structures, causeways, and agricultural terraces that persist beneath the dense tropical forest of western Belize. LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) technology enables detection of below canopy Maya archaeological features, providing an …

Genetic Interactions Between The Guanine Nucleotide Exchange Factor Gefmeso And Gtpase Signaling Components In The Drosophila Wing Reveal Microenvironment Dependent Variation Within Gtpase Signaling N, Ashley Megan Iketani

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Ras superfamily of GTPases are important regulators of morphogenesis involved in control of cytoskeletal dynamics, intracellular trafficking, apical-basal polarity and cell migration. Mis-regulation of GTPase signaling interferes with development and is linked to pathogenesis. Traditionally, GTPase signaling has been depicted as a series of independent linear pathways. However, recently it has become apparent that multiple GTPases can interact to regulate a single cellular process, functioning in poorly understood networks of cross talk between pathways during development. Jim Fristrom (unpublished data) identified a mutation (18-5) that interacts with components of the GTPases Rho1, Rala, and Cdc42 signaling in multiple developmental …

Light-Activated Binary Nucleotide Reagent For Inactivation Of Dna Polymerase, Evan M. Cornett

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This work explores a binary reagent approach to increase the specificity of covalent inhibitors. In this approach, two ligand analogs equipped with inert pre-reactive groups specifically bind a target biopolymer. The binding event brings the pre-reactive groups in proximity with each other. The two groups react, generating active chemical intermediates that covalently modify and inactivate the target. In the present study we compare the new approach with the traditional single-component reagent strategy using DNA polymerase from bacteriophage T4 as a model target biopolymer. We report the design and synthesis of two analogs of deoxythymidine triphosphate, a natural DNA polymerase substrate. …