Digital Commons Network^™

Microbial Conditioning Of Biomass For Ethanol Production, Swetha Mahalaxmi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Exploring Mechanisms Involved In Grapevine Bud Paradormancy, Dong He

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Regulation of the growth cycle in grapevine is important for crop production and vine survival. In particular, maintenance of the developing bud in paradormancy is critical for the vine to produce shoot and flower primordia for the next seasons while preventing bud outgrowth in the current season. Developing an understanding of the underlying mechanisms regulating paradormancy can contribute to better cultural management of vine canopy during the growing season; however, a systematic study of axillary bud paradormancy has not been done. The objective of this dissertation is to investigate factors influencing maintenance of axillary bud paradormancy and explore the underlying …

Nesting And Brood-Rearing Success And Resource Selection Of Greater Sage-Grouse In Northwestern South Dakota, Nicholas W. Kaczor

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Understanding population dynamics and resource selection is crucial in developing wildlife resource management plans, particularly for sensitive species. Greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) populations have declined range-wide at a rate of 2% per year from 1965 to 2003. In South Dakota, populations have generally declined. Reasons for the decline are mostly attributed to human-induced factors such as sagebrush degradation and removal, improper range management practices, oil and gas exploration, and West Nile virus infection. Sage-grouse occupy habitats at the eastern edge of their range in western South Dakota. We conducted a 2-year study to investigate the nesting and brood-rearing ecology of …

City Of Sioux Falls Anaerobic Digester Mixing Study, Brian R. Knadle

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The feasibility of utilizing the existing anaerobic digester feeding pumps to effectively mix the three primary anaerobic digesters at the Sioux Falls Water Reclamation Plant (SFWRP) was investigated. The digesters were originally designed to be mixed by the recirculation of sludge and the recirculation of biogas through gas compressors. The gas compressors are currently at the end of their useful life and are scheduled to be replaced in the next 3-4 years. The effectiveness of mixing the primary digesters strictly through hydraulic recirculation was measured by computing the active volume of the anaerobic digesters with various mixing schemes. The analysis …

An Efficient O(N) Algorithm For Computer Simulation Of Rigid Body Molecular Dynamics, Andy Ries

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

An efficient working model for the computer simulation of motion behaviors associated with molecular dynamics is presented. This model has been developed through a seamless integration between computational molecular dynamics, multibody dynamics, mathematical numerics, and computer science. Thus an efficient and effective rigid molecular modeling technique and O(n) simulation procedure has been produced as result of the integration. As computer simulation of molecular dynamics emerges as an effective method for nano phenomenon analysis, an efficient means to perform these simulations would greatly ease any computational burdens that may be presented for a researcher. Traditional methods for molecular dynamics simulations rely …

Towards A Land Conservation Ethic In Zimbabwe: An Ethical And Religio-Cultural Analysis Of Land Conservation Policies And Practices In Communal Areas, Maaraidzo Elizabeth Mutambara

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this study I analyze the problem of land degradation in Zimbabwe's Communal Areas (CAs) from the viewpoint of the Shona of Zimbabwe with the aim to formulate a land conservation ethic that motivates people in CAs to promote ecological stability. The Shona in CAs are proximate agents as well as victims of environmental degradation. The imperative to survive in a situation characterized by drastic inequalities in the allocation of land and an exploitative global economic system, forces them to engage in unsustainable land use practices. Land conservation policies in Zimbabwe marginalize Shona values and norms, especially as they relate …

Religion And Race : Cuban Confraternities In The Nineteenth Century, Hunter Upchurch

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

New Kahalalide Derivatives From The Alga Bryopsis Pennata, Jiangtao Gao

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Gay Darl : A New Reading Of Erotics In As I Lay Dying, Phillip Andrew Gordon

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

I'Ll Give You That, Emily M. Green

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Home In Repair, Anne Corbitt

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Going Solo : The Benefits Of Creating A Single Parent Magazine / By Ellen L. Mcclurkin, Ellen L. Mcclurkin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Analysis Of The Effects Of Patient Position And Bladder Volume On Urinary Bladder Pressure, Chad C. Brown

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Urinary bladder pressure (UBP) is an important indicator for a variety of medical conditions. Eighty hospital subjects each had their UBP measured four times at various bladder volumes and lying positions. Positions included 0 degrees supine, 30 degrees supine, 30 degrees right lateral and 30 degrees left lateral, and the volumes included 0mL, 25mL, 50mL and 200mL. For each volume, mean UBP was found to be somewhat lower for subjects measured in non-elevated position (0 degrees supine) than any of the elevated positions (30 degrees), although the sizes of the effect only sometimes reached significance. Additionally, for each position, mean …

W.E.B. Du Bois And The Rhetoric Of Social Change, 1897-1907: Attitude As Incipient Action, Fendrich Clark

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examines the social change rhetoric of scholar and civic activist W.E.B. Du Bois to understand the role, motivations, influences, and shortcomings of his message upon a shifting current of black thought during the late ninetieth and early twentieth-century. In this study, I focus upon Du Bois' rhetorical aptitude in the building of his character, the emotional appeals made to his immediate audience, and the logical arguments and counter arguments that he publicly advanced in developing his program of parallel development.
I contend that in providing an alternate narrative to the competing opinions of accommodation as a solution to …

An Examination Of Pharmacy Faculty Quality Of Work Life: Work Satisfaction, Turnover Intentions, And Self-Efficacy, Mark H. Conklin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Previous research on pharmacy faculty quality of work life lacks a thorough, well-conceived theoretical foundation, especially in critical areas such as work satisfaction and turnover intentions. The objectives of this study are to develop a comprehensive measure of pharmacy academician work satisfaction and determine the contribution of work life variables toward pharmacy academician work satisfaction, job turnover intentions, and self-efficacies. An e-mail survey sent to pharmacy faculty elicited responses on various single and multi-item measures of quality of work life variables. Factor analytic procedures were used to evaluate the validity and reliability of the work satisfaction scale. Multiple regression procedures …

African American Males And Issues Of Fatherhood: An Examination Of The Sweat Lodge As A Psychosocial And Spiritual Intervention, Jay E. Darr

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The emasculation of African American men is illustrated by disparities in the criminal justice system, education, employment, income, and health care, which has an impact on an African American man's ability to be a father. Researchers, policy-makers, and practitioners have struggled with establishing sustainable programs that address the complex issues that face African American men, especially when they have children (Martinson & Nightingale 2008). The emergence of the Sweat Lodge as an intervention for Native Americans has had some promising results (Cohen, 2003; Edwards, 2003, Noe, Fleming & Manson 2003; Smith, 2005). However, there is limited research on the Sweat …

Towards A Hermeneutical Understanding Of The Listening Process, Molly Mae Stoltz

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation offers an alternative to the behaviorist understanding of the listening process inherent in the models developed by scholars such as Brownell, Wolvin and Coakley. Using mostly close-text analysis to examine the trends of the literature to date, this dissertation introduces the ideas of Gadamer on philosophical hermeneutics and Fuimara on the connections between listening and hermeneutics to the current discussion. This dissertation argues that the process actually starts when one makes the choice to listen. It distinguishes the choice to listen from the behaviorist concepts of willingness and attention and connects it to Gadamer's understanding of tradition and …

A Contemporary Consideration Of The Role Of Metaphysics In Systematic Theology: The Contributions Of Pope John Paul Ii And Claude Tresmontant, Daniel M. Strudwick

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

It has been traditionally held that Catholic theology has notable metaphysical threads deeply connected with the fabric of its faith and its systematic presentation. This dissertation focuses upon those "metaphysical threads" in order to explore their past, present and possible future status within theology. In each section the goal is to investigate the contributions of John Paul II and Claude Tresmontant and the role they believe metaphysics has within Catholic Systematic theology. This work attempts to present and assess whether, which, and why components of metaphysics, according to John Paul II and Tresmontant, should be retained even in light of …

The Synthesis And Physicochemical Characterization Of New Monothiophosphate Materials, Nathan Takas

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The following dissertation focuses on the chemistry of materials incorporating the monothiophosphate anion. The monothiophosphate anion is a member of the oxythiophosphates, a family of compounds in which phosphorus is bound to both oxygen and sulfur. This chemical characteristic places the metal oxythiophosphates between the well known families of the metal phosphates and thiophosphates. While both the metal phosphates and thiophosphates have been reported numerous times in the literature, the oxythiophosphates are rare, with only 29 compounds reported prior to this dissertation. Three new monothiophosphate materials are presented in this work, as well a new polymorph of a previously known …

Evolution Of Prostatic Acid Phosphatase (Acpp) Expression In Hominoids, Kathryn Hooper-Boyd

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Hominoids vary in their mating behavior. Levels of sperm competition vary accordingly. Species in which females mate with a large number of males are expected to experience high levels of sperm competition, such as chimpanzee and bonobo, while polygynous gorillas likely have little or no sperm competition. Coding regions of several seminal proteins have been shown to be experiencing positive selection, but little is known about the regulatory regions of these genes. The 1.7 kb upstream promoter region of prostatic acid phosphatase (ACPP) of human, bonobo, gorilla, orangutan, gibbon, and macaque was cloned into a luciferase reporter vector and transiently …

Atrazine And Info-Disruption: Does The Pesticide Atrazine Disrupt The Transfer Of Chemical Information In The Terrestrial Salamander, Plethodon Shermani?, Stephanie Lanzel

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Atrazine is a commonly used herbicide in the United States and is a potential info-disruptor. Atrazine acts as an info-disruptor in fish, by dampening olfactory responses to pheromones, and atrazine has been linked to endocrine disruption in frogs. By interfering with chemoreception, atrazine may potentially impact foraging and reproductive success in various species. I hypothesized that in the terrestrial salamander, Plethodon shermani, in which chemical communication is important in social and foraging behaviors; atrazine would act as an odorant and/or interfere with chemosensation. I predicted that both acute and chronic exposure to atrazine would decrease chemoinvestigative behaviors, pheromone detection by …

Modification Of Nitinol Nickel And Titanium Oxides With Self-Assembled Monolayers And Polymers For Corrosion Mitigation In Biomtaerial Applications, Rosalynn Quinones-Fernandez

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

For the first time Self-Assembled Monolayers (SAMs) were formed on nitinol and characterized. Factors which can affect the formation of SAMs such as head groups, chain length, and tail groups were varied and analyzed to form the most stable and strongly adhered monolayer on the surface. Since an alloy is being studied, the formation of SAMs was also studied on nickel and titanium oxide, the components of the nitinol surface. After data was collected by infrared spectroscopy (IR), atomic force microscopy (AFM), matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI), and contact angle measurements on the modified substrates. In the long …

"Is Not The Past All Shadow?": History And Vision In Byron, The Shelleys, And Keats, Timothy Ruppert

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Throughout the British Romantic period, poets and prose writers shared a keen interest in the imaginative possibilities conferred by the national legacy of literary prophecy. The subversive and transformative elements of the vatic tradition in England, particularly as established by John Milton's aesthetically and politically radical work, appealed to both older and younger Romantic writers who sought not simply to describe their times but to remake them. To such minds, prophecy offered a historically authoritative genre equipped with unique aesthetic principles and a seemingly timely interventionist ethic, whether turned to the renovation of individual men and women or of whole …

Mechanistic And Clinical Studies Of Platelet Rich Plasma: A Simple Clinical Method For Enhancing Bone And Soft Tissue Healing, James L. Rutkowski

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Platelet rich plasma (PRP) is a methodology of using a patient's own platelets to enhance bone and soft tissue healing following oral surgical procedures. Whole blood is drawn from the patient by conventional phlebotomy techniques and then centrifuged with the formation of a distinct middle layer that contains platelets and white blood cells (WBCs). This layer of platelets and WBCs is then placed into the surgical site to enable faster and more predictable healing. This technique has also found use in general medical surgeries and is gaining in popularity.

Platelets contain growth factors and other cytokines that are beneficial for …

Evaluation Of Attention And Executive Control Within A Model Of Gf-Gc Cognitive Functioning, Adam Scheller

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Gf-Gc model (McGrew, 2003; McGrew and Flanagan, 1998) guided the development of most contemporary cognitive ability tests (Kaufman and Kaufman, 2004; Wechsler, 2003), as it enumerates general cognitive ability through the evaluation of its multiple components. This study involved an investigation of the Gf-Gc domains including added attention and executive control domains, which was measured by the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, 4th Edition (WISC-IV) and Conners' Continuous Performance Test, 2nd Edition (CPT-II). These domains were compared via factor analysis of the WISC-IV and CPT-II.

In addition, Structural Equation Modeling was used to test the structure of the Dean-Woodcock …

Gene Regulation Through Artificially Induced Dna Conformational Changes, David Bednarski

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The conformation of DNA has been shown to play an important role in the regulation of gene expression. A consequence of this finding is that agents that alter the conformation of DNA should also affect the regulation of gene expression. To explore this, we used tethered-triple helix oligonucleotides (TFO) to bend DNA. We show that the expression of a luciferase gene is regulated by the presence of an induced DNA bend. Bends occurring in the same orientation as RNA polymerase binding result in a 93% increase in expression. In contrast, bends induced in that opposite direction resulted in a 51% …

The Steroid Sulfatase Inhibitor (P-O-Sulfamoyl) - Tetradecanoyl Tyramine (Du-14) Enhances Memory Retention In Passive Avoidance In Rats With Hippocampal Cholinergic Deficit, Phebian Arinola Abitoye

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Neurosteroids, such as dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, (DHEAS) are steroidal compounds synthesized within the central nervous system that modulate its function. Among the effects associated with sulfated neurosteroids is the enhancement of memory. Previous studies have demonstrated that altering the metabolism of neurosteroids via inhibition of the enzyme steroid sulfatase could reverse scopolamine-induced amnesia. p-O-(Sulfamoyl) - tetradecanoyl tyramine (DU-14) is a steroid sulfatase inhibitor (SSI) that prevents the conversion of DHEAS to DHEA thereby increasing the concentration of sulfated neurosteroids to potentiate the effect of endogenous DHEAS. To determine whether DU-14 could enhance memory retention for footshock in rats with hippocampal cholinergic …

Student Assistance Program Outcomes Of Students At Risk For Suicide, Virginia Biddle

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to examine relationships between participation in Pennsylvania's Student Assistance Program (SAP) and educational outcomes (academic performance, promotion/graduation status, attendance, suspension, and policy violations) of students at risk for suicide. The methodology was based on the Framework for Program Evaluation in Public Health, while the theoretical framework was Jessor's Protection-Risk Model. A retrospective analysis was performed using existing SAP data maintained by Pennsylvania's Department of Education. Binomial and multinomial logistic regressions were performed.

Being referred and participating in the SAP due to suicidal ideation, gesture, or attempt predicted fewer drug and alcohol policy violations and …

Emergency Contraception, Catholic Hospitals, And Rape, Valerie Violi-Satkoske

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Roman Catholic Church teaches that a woman is permitted to protect herself from becoming pregnant due to rape. However, scientific uncertainties with regard to emergency contraception's mechanisms of action and the inability to detect pregnancy prior to implantation have led many Catholic healthcare facilities to limit a rape victims access to emergency contraception (EC), due to what the Church construes to be EC's potentially abortifacient properties. While the science is uncertain, the withholding of EC by Catholic healthcare facilities treats the science as settled, true, or certain and may be experienced as oppressive by rape victims. The Catholic Church …

William Dean Howells And The New Science: Darwinian Evolution And The Rise Of Realism, Stephen Wells

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Broad acceptance of Charles Darwin's Origin of Species emboldened a young William Dean Howells to explore the possibility of a scientific foundation for a new literature combining close observations of the immediate environment with a method of interpreting these observations based on evolutionary science as Howells understood it. Charles Sprague's "The Darwinian Theory," published in the Atlantic in 1866, the year Howells became assistant editor, provided the foundation for this new method, and Alfred Russel Wallace's The Malay Archipelago (1869) prompted Howells to take what he called "a new direction" in fiction based on evolutionary theory and natural selection. He …