Digital Commons Network^™

Molecular Genetic Analysis Of Division And Development In Streptomyces Coelicolor, Jennifer Ann Bennett

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Here I describe both molecular and classical genetic approaches to the study of prokaryotic cell division. I detail the characterization of four cell division gene homologues: ftsL, divIC, ftsW and ftsI. FtsI, a penicillin-binding protein and transpeptidase involved specifically in septal peptidoglycan biosynthesis, is the only protein product of these four genes with a known role during cell division. I show that a null-mutation in any of the four genes resulted in a mutant with a medium-dependent division phenotype that was more severe on a rich medium. In E. coli, B. subtilis and other bacteria, these genes are essential, but …

On The Day You Were Born: A Phenomenological Study Of Fathers' Experience Of Being Present At Their Children's Birth, Nick Williams

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is a qualitative investigation into the lived experience of becoming a father through witnessing the event of childbirth. I analyze transcripts of conversations between five fathers and myself using a phenomenological method to distinguish meaningful and psychologically significant statements. I then weave these statements into a series of thematically and structurally consistent narratives that reflect the fathers' attitudes and experiences concerning becoming and being a father. From these narratives, I draw together themes that appeared across multiple fathers' stories. These themes consist of the father's relationship with the social world, including fathers in relation to other fathers and …

Growing Old On The Farm: An Ethnonursing Examination Of Aging And Health Within The Agrarian Rural Subculture, Diane Witt

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this Ethnonursing study was to discover and explore the elder agrarian rural subculture in regard to well-being, health beliefs, values and practices. In depth interviews utilizing a semi-structured interview guide were carried out with eleven key and 23 general informants in a rural county in south-central Minnesota. A snowball method was utilized to recruit informants. Concurrent analysis was carried out utilizing Leininger's phases of Ethnonursing analysis for qualitative data.

Data management and analysis was facilitated through the use of QSR NVivo software for qualitative data analysis version 6. Sixteen categories, ten patterns and three themes emerged from …

German Culture As Reflected Through The Developments Of Two Children's Educational Television Programs, Tracy L. Case

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Rf Low Pass Filter Design And Fabrication Using Integrated Passive Device Technology, Heli Li

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this thesis, the whole process of design a low pass filter (LPF) for the wireless communication application has been presented. Integrated passive device technology based on GaAs substrate has been utilized to make the LPF. Schematic simulation and electromagnetic simulations are extensively used in the design process. EM simulation is used in the selection of layout design and processing parameters for design optimization of both the inductors and IPD harmonic filters. The effective use of EM simulation enables us to realize the successful development of high performance harmonic filters. To make the optimization be more flexible and also for …

Rapid Prototyping Of Microfluidic Packages, Michael Pepper

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In the area of MEMS there exists a tremendous need for communication between the micro-device and the macro world. A standard protocol or at least multiple standards would be of great use. Electrical connections have been standardized for many uses and configurations by the integrated circuit industry. Standardization in the IC industry has created a marketplace for digital devices unprecedented. In addition to the number of "off the shelf" products available, there exists the possibility for consumers to mix and match many devices from many different manufacturers. This research proposes some similar solutions as those for integrated circuits for fluid …

Does Culture Matter? : Exploring The Relationships Among Parenting A Child With Disabilities, Cultural Identification, And Stress In A Group Of European American And Immigrant Latino Families, Ximena P. Suarez-Sousa

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this correlational exploratory study was to delve into the experience of raising a child with disabilities by investigating the parents' level of stress and the role played by culture, acculturation, and various demographic variables suggested by the literature to influence stress were included. A purposive sample composed of 38 primarily undocumented immigrant Latino parents and 32 European American parents of children with disabilities was recruited from community agencies in a Midwest state. The most frequent disabilities were orthopedic impairments, pervasive developmental disorders, and mental retardation.

Data were collected with the Parent Survey, comprised of the Questionnaire on …

The Role Of Expectancies In Binge Eating Behavior, Jessica Larose

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The central aim of the present study was to examine the role of expectancies in binge eating behavior. Two distinct statistical techniques were used to accomplish this goal. First, regression analyses were conducted using variables previously identified in the literature, as well as eating expectancies as measured by the Eating Expectancy Inventory (EEI). For both females and males, regression equations including expectancies accounted for a substantial portion of the variance in binge eating behavior. Second, memory modeling techniques were used to model the probable organization of eating expectancies. Memory modeling of hypothetical expectancy networks has lead to successful interventions in …

Identification Of System Design Features That Affect Sickness In Virtual Environments, Julie Drexler

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The terms "simulator" and "VR" are typically used to refer to specific types of virtual environments (VEs) which differ in the technology used to display the simulated environment. While simulators and VR devices may offer advantages such as low cost training, numerous studies on the effects to humans of exposure to different VEs indicate that motion sickness-like symptoms are often produced during or after exposure to the simulated environment. These deleterious side effects have the potential to limit the utilization of VE systems if they jeopardize the health and/or safety of the user and create liability issues for the manufacturer. …

Analysis Of Aircraft Arrival Delay And Airport On-Time Performance, Yuqiong Bai

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

While existing grid environments cater to specific needs of a particular user community, we need to go beyond them and consider general-purpose large-scale distributed systems consisting of large collections of heterogeneous computers and communication systems shared by a large user population with very diverse requirements. Coordination, matchmaking, and resource allocation are among the essential functions of large-scale distributed systems. Although deterministic approaches for coordination, matchmaking, and resource allocation have been well studied, they are not suitable for large-scale distributed systems due to the large-scale, the autonomy, and the dynamics of the systems. We have to seek for nondeterministic solutions for …

An Investigation Of Principals' Attitudes Toward The Knowledge And Use Of Learning Styles In Therapeutic Settings, Renee Pancoast

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In March, 2006 the Principal's Attitudes Toward the Knowledge, Value, and Application of Learning Styles with Students in Therapeutic Settings survey developed by the author was distributed to 120 principals belonging to the National Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs. Two mailings yielded a return of 68 (56.6%) usable survey instruments from which principals' self-reporting on knowledge, value and application of learning styles was examined. Focus for this study was provided through three research questions: (a) to determine to what extent principals in therapeutic settings self-reported general knowledge of learning style applications, (b) to determine to what extent principals exhibit …

Catching Satisfaction: Personal And Political Framing In The Homebirth Movement, Nasima Pfaffl

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis illuminates the experiences, motives, and framing process of a cohort of homebirthing women in Tucson, Arizona who embody the collective action frames of the national homebirth movement. A model of birth frame construction, alignment and adoption is presented that expands current theory on social movement framing processes, cognitive liberation, and life politics in health and self-help related movements. The study explores the evolution of homebirth midwifery nationally and locally. It articulates the main collective action frames that argue against standard maternity care and presents the alternatives proffered by the homebirth movement. It presents micro-level experiences of movement pioneers, …

Understanding Employees' Behavioral Reactions To Aggression In Organizations, Marie Mitchell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation is to explore employees' behavioral reactions to the perceived aggression of others. Perceived aggression is defined as behavior that is perceived to be intentionally harmful by the intended target. A typology is developed that identifies two primary dimensions of behavioral reaction: (1) the form of the behavior (aggression/non-aggression) and (2) the direction of the behavior (toward the source of the harm/not toward the source of the harm). Based on these dimensions, the typology produces four categories of behavioral reactions: retaliatory aggression, displaced aggression, constructive problem-solving, and withdrawal. A model is then presented, which identifies various …

Mathematical Modeling Of Smallpox Withoptimal Intervention Policy, Niwas Lawot

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this work, two differential equation models for smallpox are numerically solved to find the optimal intervention policy. In each model we look for the range of values of the parameters that give rise to the worst case scenarios. Since the scale of an epidemic is determined by the number of people infected, and eventually dead, as a result of infection, we attempt to quantify the scale of the epidemic and recommend the optimum intervention policy. In the first case study, we mimic a densely populated city with comparatively big tourist population, and heavily used mass transportation system. A mathematical …

Variables That Predict Success With Associate Degree Nursing Students At A Community College In Florida, Linda Miles

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this exploratory, retrospective study was to determine if student demographics and academic variables predicted student persistence and success in an associate degree nursing program in Florida and to investigate the variables in Tinto's Longitudinal Model of Dropout (1975).The sample population (N=304) for this study was students enrolled in one of the initial courses of the associate degree nursing program at Daytona Beach Community College (DBCC) in Daytona Beach, FL from August 2002 through August 2003. Students were assigned to one of three groups (a) passing group, (b) failing group, or (c) withdrawing group. The convenience sample of …

An Investigation Of The Effectiveness Of Computer-Assisted Biofeedback For Students Diagnosed As Having Autism Spectrum Disorder, Nancy Aguinaga

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Using a single-subject multiple baseline design across participants, this study examined the impact of computer-assisted biofeedback to promote engagement of students diagnosed as having autism spectrum disorder. The study was conducted in a public school classroom setting. Specifically the on-task behavior during an individualized academic activity was investigated. Three 9-10 year old children participated in the study. In the baseline phase, data was collected on speed to engagement and percentage of time on-task during an academic activity. A 15-second momentary time sampling procedure was used for a 5 minute session each day of the week for a five week period …

Predicting Anxiety From Parent And Childhood Variables, Brian Fisak

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The high prevalence rate, significant distress and impairment, and persistence of childhood anxiety disorders highlight the need for continued theoretical conceptualization and research into the developmental pathways associated these disorders. In response to this need, one goal this project was to examination and identify variables associated with the development and/or maintenance of child anxiety disorders. A second goal of this project was to examine the potential role of learning from parents as a risk factor in the development of child anxiety, with a particular emphasis on three learning mechanisms: modeling, information transfer, and reinforcement of anxious behaviors. The third goal …

The Taino Are Still Alive, Taino Cuan Yahabo: An Example Of The Social Construction Of Race And Ethnicity, David Cintron

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Definitions and boundaries of race and ethnicity are socially constructed. They are malleable inventions created by the negotiation of ascribed ideas from outside groups and asserted notions from the inside group's membership. The revitalization of Taíno identity and culture within the Puerto Rican and related communities is a classic case example of this negotiation. Although objective conditions exist to recognize the descendants of these Caribbean aboriginals as an identifiable group, their identities are contested and sometimes ridiculed. Even though Taíno heritage is accepted as an essential root of Puerto Rico's cultural and biological make-up, this group has been classified as …

Science Self-Efficacy In Tenth Grade Hispanic Female High School Students, Maria Miller

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Historical data have demonstrated an underrepresentation of females and minorities in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) professions. The purpose of the study considered the variables of gender and ethnicity collectively in relationship to tenth grade Hispanic females' perception of their self-efficacy in science. The correlation of science self-efficacy to science academic achievement was also studied. Possible interventions for use with female Hispanic minority populations might help increase participation in STEM field preparation during the high school career. A population of 272 students was chosen through convenience sampling methods, including 80 Hispanic females. Students were administered a 27-item questionnaire taken …

A Three-Dimensional Bay/Estuary Model To Simulate Water Quality Transport, Jing Yu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis presents the development of a numerical water quality model using a general paradigm of reaction-based approaches. In a reaction-based approach, all conceptualized biogeochemical processes are transformed into a reaction network. Through the decomposition of species governing equations via Gauss-Jordan column reduction of the reaction network, (1) redundant fast reactions and irrelevant kinetic reactions are removed from the system, which alleviates the problem of unnecessary and erroneous formulation and parameterization of these reactions, and (2) fast reactions and slow reactions are decoupled, which enables robust numerical integrations. The system of species transport equations is transformed to reaction-extent transport equations, …

Modeling Inter-Plant Interactions, Jessica Larson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this paper is to examine the interactions between two plant species endemic to Florida and develop a model for the growth of one of the plant species. An equation for the growth of Hypericum cumulicola is developed through analyzing how the distance to and the height of the nearest Ceratiola ericoides (Florida rosemary) affects the growth of Hypericum cumulicola. The hypericums were separated into five separate regions according to the distance to the nearest rosemary plant. The parameters for a basic growth equation were obtained in each of the five regions and compared to each other along …

On The Use Of Variable Coherence In Inverse Scattering Problems, Erwan Baleine

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Even though most of the properties of optical fields, such as wavelength, polarization, wavefront curvature or angular spectrum, have been commonly manipulated in a variety of remote sensing procedures, controlling the degree of coherence of light did not find wide applications until recently. Since the emergence of optical coherence tomography, a growing number of scattering techniques have relied on temporal coherence gating which provides efficient target selectivity in a way achieved only by bulky short pulse measurements. The spatial counterpart of temporal coherence, however, has barely been exploited in sensing applications. This dissertation examines, in different scattering regimes, a variety …

Improving Parent Involvement For Culturally And Lingustically Diverse Parents Of Middle School Students With Disabilities From Urban Settings In Suburban Schools, Michelle Urquhart

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study was designed to address the need for improved collaborative experiences for culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) parents of students with disabilities. Historically, these individuals have had limited interactions with special education services and professionals, particularly at the middle school level. To improve the collaborative relationship between CLD families and schools, the study offered collaborative training sessions designed to provide opportunities for parents to build on their current knowledge base and skills for effective partnerships with school personnel. The goal of the training was to increase the types and frequency of school involvement by CLD parents. The participants for …

A Fluid Structure Interaction Model Of Intracoronary Atherosclerotic Plaque Rupture, Eric Teuma-Melago

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Plaque rupture with superimposed thrombosis is the primary cause of acute coronary syndromes of unstable angina, myocardial infarction and sudden death. Although intensive studies in the past decade have shed light on the mechanism that causes unstable atheroma, none has directly addressed the clinical observation that most myocardial infarction (MI) patients have moderate stenoses (less than 50%). Considering the important role the arterial wall compliance and pulsitile blood flow play in atheroma rupture, fluid-structure interaction (FSI) phenomenon has been of interest in recent studies. In this thesis, the impact is investigated numerically of coupled blood flow and structural dynamics on …

The Relationship Between Self-Reported Chronic Stress And Divided Attention Performance, Diane Petrac

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

While previous research has extensively examined the effect of acute stress on cognitive performance, relatively little research has explored the relationship between chronic stress and cognitive performance. The current study aimed to control for current state anxiety to better isolate more chronic stress, when examining the relationship with performance on divided attention tasks. Fifty-four university undergraduates, who self-reported a wide range of perceived chronic stress (10-item Perceived Stress Scale), completed the Trail-Making Test and a dual (auditory and visual) Continuous Performance Test (CPT). Hierarchical regressions were performed to explore cognitive predictors of chronic perceived stress. After covarying for state anxiety …

A Comparative Study Of Ant Colony Optimization, Matthew Becker

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Ant Colony Optimization (ACO) belongs to a class of biologically-motivated approaches to computing that includes such metaheuristics as artificial neural networks, evolutionary algorithms, and artificial immune systems, among others. Emulating to varying degrees the particular biological phenomena from which their inspiration is drawn, these alternative computational systems have succeeded in finding solutions to complex problems that had heretofore eluded more traditional techniques. Often, the resulting algorithm bears little resemblance to its biological progenitor, evolving instead into a mathematical abstraction of a singularly useful quality of the phenomenon. In such cases, these abstract computational models may be termed biological metaphors. Mindful …

Pharmacological Characterization Of Brain Angiotensin Ii Receptor Function And Ligand Binding, Surinder Kaur

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Disillusionment, Kimberly Lockhart Noll

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Effectiveness And Kinetics Of Ferrate As A Disinfectant For Ballast Water, Andrea L. Jessen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The introduction of aquatic nuisance species (ANS) and bacterial pathogens from discharge of ballast water by sea-faring vessels is an ongoing problem that threatens ecosystems and human health. This study investigates the disinfecting capability of ferrate in a marine environment on several organisms listed in international standards for ballast water management. Organisms were grown in a saline solution and were treated with dosages of ferrate ranging from 0.25-5.0 mg/l. A ferrate dose of 5 mg/l resulted in almost complete kill for all organisms tested. Smaller dosages have also been very effective, particularly if all organic material from the nutrient broth …

Lattice Vibration Study Of Silica Nanoparticle In Suspension, Parveen Sachdeva

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In recent years considerable research has been done in the area of "nanofluids". Nanofluids are colloidal suspensions of nanometer size metallic or oxide particles in a base fluid such as water, ethylene glycol. Nanofluids show enhanced heat transfer characteristics compared to the base fluid. The thermal transport properties of nanofluids depend on various parameters e.g. interfacial resistance, Brownian motion of particles, liquid layering at the solid-liquid interface and clustering of nanoparticles. In this work atomic scale simulation has been used to study possible mechanisms affecting the heat transfer characteristics of nanofluids. Molecular dynamics simulation for a single silica nanoparticle surrounded …