Digital Commons Network^™

Soil Microbial Community Dynamics In Florida Scrub Ecosystem, Maria Albarracin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Pyrogenic ecosystems are maintained by fires which vary in frequency, seasonality, and intensity. Florida oak-saw palmetto scrub ecosystem is characterized by fires occurring at intervals of 10-20 years. Diverse factors as private land acquisition and development has created a patchy distribution of scrub ecosystems and also interrupted the natural fire cycle. The effects of fire over plant regeneration and fauna habitat utilization of the scrub have been well characterized in previous research. In the present paper the objective is to characterize the short- and long-term fire effects on the soil microbial community. Fire effects were studied in a chronosequence, comprising …

Effects Of A Shore Protection Project On Loggerhead And Green Turtle Nesting Activity And Reproduction In Brevard County, Florida, Kelly Brock

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Marine turtle reproductive success is strongly correlated with the stability and quality of the nesting environment. Because females show fidelity to key nesting beaches, the management and physical characteristics of these beaches directly affect future generations of marine turtles and may be essential for the recovery of these threatened and endangered species. The impacts of beach restoration on loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) and on green turtles (Chelonia mydas) were investigated. Previous studies concerning beach nourishment projects have focused on loggerhead turtles. I compared data between nourished and non-nourished areas and between loggerhead and green turtles. I found, at one season …

Expression Of Gal/Galnac Lectin Of Entamoeba Histolytica In Transgenic Chloroplasts To Develop A Vaccine For Amebiasis, Seethamahalakshmi Chebolu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Amebiasis, also defined as invasive intestinal and extra intestinal amebiasis, is caused by Entameoba histolytica, an invasive protozoan parasite. World Health Organization (WHO) has reported that approximately 50 million people are infected each year causing an estimated 40 to 100 thousand deaths annually. Entameoba histolytica ranks only second to malaria as a protozoan cause of death. Amebiasis occurs world wide but people living in Central and South America, Africa and Asia are the majority to suffer from morbidity and mortality. The enteric parasite has no zoonotic reservoirs and insect vectors for its transmission and infects humans and non-human primates. Therefore, …

Juvenile Green Turtle (Chelonia Mydas) Foraging Ecology:Feeding Selectivity And Forage Nutrient Analysis, Eliza Gilbert

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

For the endangered green turtle, Chelonia mydas, a fundamental component of recovery and conservation is an understanding of its foraging ecology. Foraging optimality models suggest animals will select resources of high quality over those of low quality. For green turtles, this behavior is important, as sufficient quantities of nutritionally adequate forage items are necessary for growth and reproduction. One intrinsic element in the understanding of green turtle foraging ecology is to identify and document the availability and quality of forage resources preferred by green turtles. The objectives of this study were: 1) determine whether juvenile green turtles showed a feeding …

Implementing Lexical And Creative Intentionality In Synthetic Personality, Erik Vick

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Creating engaging, interactive, and immersive synthetic characters is a difficult task and evaluating the success of a synthetic character is often even more difficult. The later problem is solved by extending Turing's Imitation Game thusly: computational construct should be evaluated based on the criteria of how well the character can mimic a human. In order to accomplish a successful evaluation of the proposed metric, synthetic characters must be consistently believable and capable of role-appropriate emotional expression. The author believes traditional synthetic characters must be improved to meet this goal. For a synthetic character to be believable, human users must be …

The Intellectual History Of Inter-War British Fascists, John Tucci

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Between World Wars I and II, allied forces girded themselves to quash yet another enemy bent on world conquest: fascism. In England, however, the British fascists set about to save what they saw as a dying empire. In an effort to restore Britain's greatness, British fascism held to fascist principles and doctrine to stem the flow of immigration, which fascists saw as darkening the pure British culture. While many of the British fascists strongly admired Nazi Germany's version of fascism, they were unique in that they forged their solutions from social ills that were distinctly British. British fascists were unabashedly …

Mechanical Properties Of The Intervertebral Disc As An Estimator Of Postmortem Interval, Jennifer Noelle Jackson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Currently, forensic scientists are only able to determine time since death (or postmortem interval) up to the first 60 hours. This is based largely on insect activity. Herein, it is proposed to use the degradation of the intervertebral disc (IVD) after death to determine a relationship between the mechanical properties of cadaveric tissue and time since death in order to extend the 60-hour window. To that end, 1 fresh human spine and 6 pig spines were each separated into sections (6 human and 48 pig), with each section having one intact disc. The sections were buried, unearthed, and cleaned, leaving …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Nanocrystalline Hydroxyapatite Powder; And The Effects Of Oxide-Based Sintering Additives On Tricalcium Phosphate, Himesh A. Bhatt

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Calcium phosphate (CP) materials have been used extensively for bone replacement and augmentation due to their similarity to the mineral component of bone. In addition to being non-toxic, they are biocompatible, not recognized as foreign materials in vivo, and most importantly, exhibit osteoconductive behavior, being able to help in bone formation during healing. CPs form an intimate physicochemical bond with the host tissue, termed osseointegration. However the main limitation of calcium phosphates is their inherent brittle nature and poor mechanical performance under complex stress states. As a result, these materials have been used clinically only in non-load-bearing applications, primarily as …

The Effect Of Immediate Feedback And After Action Reviews (Aars) On Learning, Retention And Transfer, Michael Sanders

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

An After Action Review (AAR) is the Army training system's performance feedback mechanism. The purpose of the AAR is to improve team (unit) and individual performance in order to increase organizational readiness. While a large body of knowledge exists that discusses instructional strategies, feedback and training systems, neither the AAR process nor the AAR systems have been examined in terms of learning effectiveness and efficiency for embedded trainers as part of a holistic training system. In this thesis, different feedback methods for embedded training are evaluated based on the timing and type of feedback used during and after training exercises. …

Ascertaining The Growth Of A Company A System Dynamics Approach, Fakir Mohideen Noor Mohideen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Business is often about creating change for other businesses. At times, these changes affect only the company and at other times they affect the entire industry. There is a time in the life of a business when its fundamental way of functioning is questioned and is subjected to change. That change can mean an opportunity to rise to new heights, or it might even signal the beginning of the end. This fundamental change in any business is known as an inflection point. Understanding the nature of its inflection point and responding to that point suitably will help to safeguard a …

Detection Of The R-Wave In Ecg Signals, Sasanka Valluri

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis aims at providing a new approach for detecting R-waves in the ECG signal and generating the corresponding R-wave impulses with the delay between the original R-waves and the R-wave impulses being lesser than 100 ms. The algorithm was implemented in Matlab and tested with good results against 90 different ECG recordings from the MIT-BIH database. The Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT) forms the heart of the algorithm providing a multi-resolution analysis of the ECG signal. The wavelet transform decomposes the ECG signal into frequency scales where the ECG characteristic waveforms are indicated by zero crossings. The adaptive threshold algorithms …

A New Paradigm Of Modeling Watershed Water Quality, Fan Zhang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Accurate models to reliably predict sediment and chemical transport in watershed water systems enhance the ability of environmental scientists, engineers and decision makers to analyze the impact of contamination problems and to evaluate the efficacy of alternative remediation techniques and management strategies prior to incurring expense in the field. This dissertation presents the conceptual and mathematical development of a general numerical model simulating (1) sediment and reactive chemical transport in river/stream networks of watershed systems; (2) sediment and reactive chemical transport in overland shallow water of watershed systems; and (3) reactive chemical transport in three-dimensional subsurface systems. Through the decomposition …

Assessment Framework For The Evaluation And Prioritization Of University Technologies For Licensing And Commercialization, Ahmad D. Rahal

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

US corporations have long recognized university related scientific research as an important source of long term economic growth and technological innovation. This dynamic involvement with industry has drastically increased the university technology transfer and licensing activities, and has stretched the human and financial resources of Technology Management and Licensing Offices of many US universities. This research provides a mechanism that can aid in the complex process of properly assessing university-owned technologies and intellectual properties, to identify those with licensing and commercialization potential for the pursuit of truly important breakthrough discoveries. This research focuses on the university technology licensing and commercialization …

Designing A Document Delivery System For Ucf S Interlibrary Loan Department, Abha Y. Trivedi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Interlibrary Loan entails obtaining copies of library materials not found in the library's collection on behalf of the library's patrons (borrowing), as well as providing copies of library materials requested by other libraries (lending). The dynamic nature of today's library environment is well illustrated by the rapid changes occurring in the role of interlibrary loan. The vision statement of the University of Central Florida Library is: The library performs a central role of adding value to information for the academic community by creatively improving and providing information resources and services. The library strives to create an environment that encourages the …

Stormwater Irrigation Of Saint Augustine Grass: Nitrogen Balance And Evapotranspiration, Ewoud Hulstein

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A change in surface condition of a watershed, which is usually caused by development, can have measured effects on the naturally occurring hydrologic cycle and nitrogen cycle. This could result in environmental problems, such as reduced springflow and eutrophication. In an effort to address these issues, a combination of best management practices (BMPs) can be adhered to. The practice of using excess stormwater as a source for irrigation is proposed as a BMP for the minimization of impacts by development to the hydrologic and nitrogen cycles. To study the proposed BMP, a field experiment was installed in an outdoor location …

Debris Tracking In A Semistable Background, Karthikkalathi Vanumamalai

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Object Tracking plays a very pivotal role in many computer vision applications such as video surveillance, human gesture recognition and object based video compressions such as MPEG-4. Automatic detection of any moving object and tracking its motion is always an important topic of computer vision and robotic fields. This thesis deals with the problem of detecting the presence of debris or any other unexpected objects in footage obtained during spacecraft launches, and this poses a challenge because of the non-stationary background. When the background is stationary, moving objects can be detected by frame differencing. Therefore there is a need for …

Grassland And Woodland Bird Occurrence And Habitat Selection In The Prairie-Forest Transition Zone Of Minnesota, Thomas Robert Cooper

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Numerous species of woodland and grassland nesting birds have experienced population declines in the midwestern United States. Habitat loss and habitat fragmentation are suspected to be two of the underlying causes for the population declines of woodland and grassland birds. The Minnesota Valley Wetland Management District (WMD) covers 14 counties in southeastern Minnesota in the transition zone between forested and prairie ecoregions. Little information is available relative to which birds are using grassland or woodland habitat within the WMD and how their presence or absence is related to the available habitat conditions. Therefore, my study objectives were to: 1) determine …

Response Of Vegetation And Endangered Waterbirds To Habitat Management Techniques At Kealia Pond National Wildlife Refuge, James Andrew Rader

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Habitat selection, reproductive effort, and habitat utilization of Hawai’ian stilts (Himantopus mexicanus knudseni) and Hawai’ian coots (Fulica alai) was studied on Kealia Pond National Wildlife Refuge in Mau’i, Hawai’i. Nesting behavior was confirmed following management treatments on the northern shore of Kealia Pond. Nests were dispersed or randomly spaced within vegetation patches or newly created mudflat habitat. Pickleweed and makai were the dominant vegetation surrounding the nest setting and utilized for nest substrate by Hawai’ian stilts and Hawai’ian coots respectively. Mechanical control treatments were implemented through monotypic stands of pickleweed to increase interspersion of open water and promote native vegetation. …

The Hyporheic Zone : Physical And Ecological Processes In Small Sand-Bed Streams / By John Michael Stofleth, John Michael Stofleth

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

As Two Become One : The Lived Experience Of A Twinless Twin, Jody Ness

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Twins enter life as a pair and are often viewed so in later life. After the death of a co-twin, twins feel like they have lost part of themselves, leaving them alone, often without professional help. No nursing research has provided insight into the experience of a twin who has lost their co-twin. The purpose of this research was to explore and describe the lived experience of a twin who has lost their co-twin. The aim was to generate an understanding of the unique bond and sense of loss experienced by twinless twins. Phenomenology and Attachment Theory were utilized to …

Establishing The Parameters Required For Spatial Models Of Marine Gas Hydrates / By Emily Strack, Emily Strack

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Evaluation Of A Pesticide Transport Model In Runoff, Subsurface Drainage And Leaching Environments, Sri Harsha K. Pulijala

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Fretting Over Faith : Protestantism And The Southern Musician, Robert Hawkins

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Cashing Out, Neil P. Conway

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Detection And Interpretation Of Small Dynamic Targets Through Optical Satellite Imaging, Scott Anderson Delozier

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Phylogenetic Investigations Of The Genus Cyprinella Based On Mitochondrial Dna Sequence Data, Tiffani Crum

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The genus Cyprinella is a highly diverse and widely distributed assemblage of freshwater fish. Members of this genus are commonly referred to as minnows and their similar appearances have led to numerous classification problems. Only recently has Cyprinella been elevated to generic status and many relationships within the genus are only beginning to be understood. To investigate the monophyly of Cyprinella leedsi, a species of Cyprinella with a highly disjunct distribution, and to develop a molecular method for tracking hybridization events between the invasive red shiner (C. lutrensis) and other southeastern Cyprinella species, the mtDNA tRNA Pro gene, the control …

Migraine: An Existential Phenomenological Study, Jodie Eckenrod

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the structure of the migraine headache experience. Three adult participants were asked to give a written answer to the question: "Please describe a time you experienced a migraine headache. Please explain what was happening before the headache, during the headache and how it was resolved." The participants were then asked for an audio taped interview with the researcher, the purpose of which was to further explore unclear areas in the written response. The written response and audio taped interview comprised the data sets for phenomenological analysis. From the data from the three participants, a general narrative of …

Primary Fatty Acid Amides In Mammalian Tissues: Isolation And Analysis By Hptlc And Spe In Conjunction With Gc/Ms, Tamanna Sultana

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Primary fatty acid amides (PFAM's) are a novel class of bio-active lipids present in mammals in trace level. Selective isolation of PFAM's from lipid extracts is crucial for obtaining them in pure and concentrated form for interference-free instrumental detection and analysis. Synthesis of these commercially unavailable lipids is also important for method development and quantitative analysis by instrumental means. In this study a wide variety of long chain saturated and unsaturated primary fatty acid amides were synthesized and characterized. This list includes the positional and geometrical isomers of naturally abundant PFAM's. Two isotopically enriched PFAM's were also synthesized which are …

Isolation And Characterization Of Water-Soluble Fluorescent Species From Human Serum, Ashraf Hamid Elamin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Lipid peroxidation (LP) proceeds by a free radical chain reaction mechanism in which molecular oxygen is incorporated into polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) to yield lipid hydroperoxides (LOOH). The ultimate end-products of LP are the production of alpha, beta unsaturated aldehydes, such as acrolein, 4-hydroxy-2-nonenal (HNE) and malondialdehyde (MDA). These aldehydes are very reactive and exhibit facile reactivity with various biomolecules, particularly proteins, resulting in the formation of fluorescent adducts that could be useful biological marker in diseases. These fluorescent adducts typically emit light between 400 and 600 nm when excited at wavelengths ranging from 300-400 nm. Lysine residues are the …

Pseudomonas Aeruginosa 1244 Piliation: Environmental Signals And Regulation, Dana Furst

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The presence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa 1244 pili on the bacterial surface is dependent upon the growth environment. Quantitative western immunoblot analysis showed that an agar plate promoted surface expression of pili, whereas bacterial cells grown in liquid broth lacked similar appendages. Hyperexpression of the pilA gene increased piliation in broth cells but not to the extent of plate cells. Real-time RT-PCR indicated that the pilA gene has the potential to be regulated posttranscriptionally, regardless of the growth environment.

The P. aeruginosa 1244 pilin glycan and lipopolysaccharide O-antigen are synthesized via the same biosynthetic pathway. Rabbits immunized with LPS-free pili produced …