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Principals Application Of Knowledge To The Structure And Support Of Special Education Programs In Florida Middle Schools, Lisa Fuehrer Bugden Jan 2007

Principals Application Of Knowledge To The Structure And Support Of Special Education Programs In Florida Middle Schools, Lisa Fuehrer Bugden

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study was developed to determine middle school principals' knowledge about the structure of the special education program in their schools and the support given to the personnel who serve students with disabilities in that program. The principals' knowledge was compared to the application of their knowledge to determine if principals were applying what they knew when making decisions about structuring and supporting the special education program in the school and the teachers and staff who work within the programs. In addition, various personal and school factors were analyzed to determine if any of these variables were significant in explaining …

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Lessings Ringparabel In Nathan Der Weise Und Ihre Relevanz FüR Die Aufklårung Und Die Heutige Zeit, Saida Abdelmalki Jan 2007

Lessings Ringparabel In Nathan Der Weise Und Ihre Relevanz FüR Die Aufklårung Und Die Heutige Zeit, Saida Abdelmalki

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

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Predictors Of Smoking Cessation Among College Students / By Patrick Riordan, Patrick Riordan Jan 2007

Predictors Of Smoking Cessation Among College Students / By Patrick Riordan, Patrick Riordan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

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A Little Hat Dyed Precisely To Match : Identity Performance And Parody In Frances Newman's The Hard-Boiled Virgin And Dead Lovers Are Faithful Lovers / By Amy Schmidt, Amy Schmidt Jan 2007

A Little Hat Dyed Precisely To Match : Identity Performance And Parody In Frances Newman's The Hard-Boiled Virgin And Dead Lovers Are Faithful Lovers / By Amy Schmidt, Amy Schmidt

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

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Rem.Nants, Melody R. Tiemann Jan 2007

Rem.Nants, Melody R. Tiemann

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

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Ecocritical Perspectives On African Literature : Place, Literary Identity, And The Natural World / Anna K. Smith, Anna K. Smith Jan 2007

Ecocritical Perspectives On African Literature : Place, Literary Identity, And The Natural World / Anna K. Smith, Anna K. Smith

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

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Effect Of Horizontal Piles On The Soil Bearing Capacity For Circular Footing Above Cavity, Rafael L. Arosemena Jan 2007

Effect Of Horizontal Piles On The Soil Bearing Capacity For Circular Footing Above Cavity, Rafael L. Arosemena

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The design of foundation in normal soil conditions is governed by bearing capacity, minimum depth of foundation and settlement. However, foundation design in karst regions needs to consider an additional criterion associated to the possibility of subsurface subsidence and ravelling sinkholes. Under this environment, alternative techniques are needed to improve the subsurface soil. In this study general background information is given to understand the geological characteristics of Central Florida and why this area is considered to be a karst region and susceptible to sinkholes formation. Traditional foundation design techniques on karst regions are addressed in this paper. Finally, the use …

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Controls Algorithm For A Satellite Using Earth's Magnetic Field: Orbit Maneuvers And Attitude Positioning, Karthik Ganesh Jan 2007

Controls Algorithm For A Satellite Using Earth's Magnetic Field: Orbit Maneuvers And Attitude Positioning, Karthik Ganesh

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This document describes the design, analysis of Orbit Maneuvers and Attitude Control for NanoSat class satellites, which uses an electro-magnetic force controller which was proposed by the Florida Space Institute (FSI). Orbit Maneuvering and the Attitude Control System (ACS) play a very important role for the success of this mission, as that can allow making the satellite go to the desired orbit as well do the sun pointing of the solar arrays with su¢ cient accuracy to achieve desired power levels. The primary mission would be to attain attitude stabilization using the torque from the coils. This is also used …

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Hybrid Photonic Signal Processing, Farzan Naseer Ghauri Jan 2007

Hybrid Photonic Signal Processing, Farzan Naseer Ghauri

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis proposes research of novel hybrid photonic signal processing systems in the areas of optical communications, test and measurement, RF signal processing and extreme environment optical sensors. It will be shown that use of innovative hybrid techniques allows design of photonic signal processing systems with superior performance parameters and enhanced capabilities. These applications can be divided into domains of analog-digital hybrid signal processing applications and free-space--fiber-coupled hybrid optical sensors. The analog-digital hybrid signal processing applications include a high-performance analog-digital hybrid MEMS variable optical attenuator that can simultaneously provide high dynamic range as well as high resolution attenuation controls; an …

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Effect Of Repeated Function Allocation And Reliability On Automation Induced Monitoring Inefficiency, Lauriann Maria Jones Jan 2007

Effect Of Repeated Function Allocation And Reliability On Automation Induced Monitoring Inefficiency, Lauriann Maria Jones

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to extend previous findings of Mouloua, Parasuraman, and Molloy (1993), Parasuraman, Mouloua, and Molloy (1996), Hilburn, Parasuraman, and Mouloua (1996), and Oakley, Mouloua, and Hancock (2003) by: 1) examining the effect of repeated adaptive function allocation to manual control of minimal length (5 minutes) to reduce of human error and minimize workload; 2) explore the placement or timing of adaptive function allocation intervals (approximately 20 minutes of automation control to reduce the human operators' monitoring decrement between intervals, maintain adaptive recovery performance levels, and improve response times); 3) examine different levels of automation reliability …

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Design For Auditory Displays: Identifying Temporal And Spatial Information Conveyance Principles, Ali Ahmad Jan 2007

Design For Auditory Displays: Identifying Temporal And Spatial Information Conveyance Principles, Ali Ahmad

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Designing auditory interfaces is a challenge for current human-systems developers. This is largely due to a lack of theoretical guidance for directing how best to use sounds in today's visually-rich graphical user interfaces. This dissertation provided a framework for guiding the design of audio interfaces to enhance human-systems performance. This doctoral research involved reviewing the literature on conveying temporal and spatial information using audio, using this knowledge to build three theoretical models to aid the design of auditory interfaces, and empirically validating select components of the models. The three models included an audio integration model that outlines an end-to-end process …

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The Impact Of Music On Postoperative Pain And Anxiety, Kelly Dixon Allred Jan 2007

The Impact Of Music On Postoperative Pain And Anxiety, Kelly Dixon Allred

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Objective: The objective of this study was to add to the body of knowledge about the impact of music on postoperative pain and anxiety. The specific purpose of this research study was to determine if listening to music and/or having a quiet rest period just prior to and just after the first ambulation on postoperative day 1 can reduce pain and/or anxiety, or impact mean arterial pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate, and/or oxygen saturation in patients following a total knee arthroplasty. Methods: An experimental repeated measures design was used. Setting: A postoperative orthopedic unit in a 300-bed community hospital in …

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Trophic Status Of A Small Mammal Assemblage On Cape Canaveral Air Force Station With An Emphasis On Peromyscus Polionotus Niveiv, Megan Keserauskis Jan 2007

Trophic Status Of A Small Mammal Assemblage On Cape Canaveral Air Force Station With An Emphasis On Peromyscus Polionotus Niveiv, Megan Keserauskis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Successful translocation of a listed species into an area of previous occupation requires knowledge of the habitat needs. The presence of the necessary food items is critical to the successful establishment of a new population; this information is unknown for Peromyscus polionotus niveiventris, the southeastern beach mouse, a threatened subspecies on the east coast of Florida. I used fecal and stable isotope analysis to determine the diet of this subspecies at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Brevard County, Florida, between the autumn of 2003 and the spring of 2005. Six trapping grids were established, three in the dune/swale and three …

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Knowledge Based Measurement Of Enhancing Brain Tissue In Anisotropic Mr Imagery, Eric Leach Jan 2007

Knowledge Based Measurement Of Enhancing Brain Tissue In Anisotropic Mr Imagery, Eric Leach

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Medical Image Analysis has emerged as an important field in the computer vision community. In this thesis, two important issues in medical imaging are addressed and a solution for each is derived and synergistically combined as one coherent system. Firstly, a novel approach is proposed for High Resolution Volume (HRV) construction by combining different frequency components at multiple levels, which are separated by using a multi-resolution pyramid structure. Current clinical imaging protocols make use of multiple orthogonal low resolution scans to measure the size of the tumor. The highly anisotropic data result in difficulty and even errors in tumor assessment. …

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Electrical Capacitance Volume Tomography Of High Contrast Dielectrics Using A Cuboid Geometry, Mark Nurge Jan 2007

Electrical Capacitance Volume Tomography Of High Contrast Dielectrics Using A Cuboid Geometry, Mark Nurge

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

An Electrical Capacitance Volume Tomography system has been created for use with a new image reconstruction algorithm capable of imaging high contrast dielectric distributions. The electrode geometry consists of two 4 x 4 parallel planes of copper conductors connected through custom built switch electronics to a commercially available capacitance to digital converter. Typical electrical capacitance tomography (ECT) systems rely solely on mutual capacitance readings to reconstruct images of dielectric distributions. This dissertation presents a method of reconstructing images of high contrast dielectric materials using only the self capacitance measurements. By constraining the unknown dielectric material to one of two values, …

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Alternative Epigraphic Interpretations Of The Maya Snake Emblem Glyph, Christopher Tyra Savage Jan 2007

Alternative Epigraphic Interpretations Of The Maya Snake Emblem Glyph, Christopher Tyra Savage

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis seeks to demonstrate that the Maya snake emblem glyph is associated with religious specialists, instead of geographic locations, as emblem glyphs are typically understood to be. The inscriptions and the media on which the snake emblem glyph occurs will be analyzed to determine the role or function of the "Lord of the Snake." Temporal and spatial data has also been collected to aid in understanding the enigmatic glyph. The snake emblem glyph has recently been identified as originating from a broad area containing the sites of El Peru and La Corona in Guatemala, and Dzibanche, Mexico, a departure …

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Investigate The Wealth Effect Of Investment Banks And Fairness Opinions They Provide In Corporate Mergers And Acquisitions, Weishen Wang Jan 2007

Investigate The Wealth Effect Of Investment Banks And Fairness Opinions They Provide In Corporate Mergers And Acquisitions, Weishen Wang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The dissertation studies the value of both investment banks' services on the whole and fairness opinions specifically, which the banks provide to the acquiring firms. In the first chapter, I examine how investment banks and acquiring firms' governance quality interact to affect shareholders' wealth in corporate mergers and acquisitions. Although the wealth impact of investment banks in mergers and acquisitions is widely studied in the literature, existing studies do not consider the interaction between governance quality and investment banks. I examine how investment banks and governance quality of acquiring firms interact to affect the wealth of acquiring firms' shareholders. I …

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Extracting Quantitative Informationfrom Nonnumeric Marketing Data: An Augmentedlatent Semantic Analysis Approach, Inigo Arroniz Jan 2007

Extracting Quantitative Informationfrom Nonnumeric Marketing Data: An Augmentedlatent Semantic Analysis Approach, Inigo Arroniz

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Despite the widespread availability and importance of nonnumeric data, marketers do not have the tools to extract information from large amounts of nonnumeric data. This dissertation attempts to fill this void: I developed a scalable methodology that is capable of extracting information from extremely large volumes of nonnumeric data. The proposed methodology integrates concepts from information retrieval and content analysis to analyze textual information. This approach avoids a pervasive difficulty of traditional content analysis, namely the classification of terms into predetermined categories, by creating a linear composite of all terms in the document and, then, weighting the terms according to …

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Accomplishment Of Dual Focus In Exploration And Exploitation: The Influential Role Of The Customer Relationship Management (Crm, Janet Tinoco Jan 2007

Accomplishment Of Dual Focus In Exploration And Exploitation: The Influential Role Of The Customer Relationship Management (Crm, Janet Tinoco

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Organizations that can successfully develop both radical and incremental innovations positively impact sustained competitive advantage, dramatically improving their chances of survival and success in both dynamic and stable environments (Han et al. 2001; Tushman and O'Reilly 1996). Experimentation and radical innovation are mandatory knowledge assets for competitive play in emerging markets, but efficiency and incremental innovation are essential for mature markets (He and Wong 2004; Tushman and O'Reilly 1996). The attainment of dual focus between radical and incremental innovation is challenging and calls for organizational architectures of sometimes conflicting processes, structure, and culture (cf, Tushman and O'Reilly 1996; Wind and …

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Anchoring Energy And Pretilt Angle Effects On Liquid Crystal Response Time, Xiangyi Nie Jan 2007

Anchoring Energy And Pretilt Angle Effects On Liquid Crystal Response Time, Xiangyi Nie

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation covers some important topics on the liquid crystal-substrate surface effects, including theoretical derivations and confirming experimental results. The research work is expected to make important impacts on liquid crystal device designs and to open new doors for further research along these topics. In this dissertation, a novel high-electric-field technique is developed to characterize the anchoring energy of vertically-aligned liquid crystal cells. Both theoretical analyses and confirming experimental results are presented. Vertically-aligned liquid crystal cells with buffed polyimide alignment layers are used to validate the measurement techniques. Based on the voltage-dependent transmittance of the liquid crystal cells, a linear …

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A Study Of Equatorial Ionopsheric Variability Using Signal Processing Techniques, Xiaoni Wang Jan 2007

A Study Of Equatorial Ionopsheric Variability Using Signal Processing Techniques, Xiaoni Wang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The dependence of equatorial ionosphere on solar irradiances and geomagnetic activity are studied in this dissertation using signal processing techniques. The statistical time series, digital signal processing and wavelet methods are applied to study the ionospheric variations. The ionospheric data used are the Total Electron Content (TEC) and the critical frequency of the F2 layer (foF2). Solar irradiance data are from recent satellites, the Student Nitric Oxide Explorer (SNOE) satellite and the Thermosphere Ionosphere Mesosphere Energetics Dynamics (TIMED) satellite. The Disturbance Storm-Time (Dst) index is used as a proxy of geomagnetic activity in the equatorial region. The results are summarized …

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Engendering Agency: Literacies, Social Action, And Wangari Maathai S Green Belt Movement, Cassandra Marie Allen Jan 2007

Engendering Agency: Literacies, Social Action, And Wangari Maathai S Green Belt Movement, Cassandra Marie Allen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis analyzes the life and work of Nobel Peace Laureate Wangari Maathai, one of the foremost African woman rhetors of our time. Wangari Maathai--founder of Kenya's Green Belt Movement (GBM), Member of Parliament, and activist for democracy, sustainable development, and human rights--has cultivated a multidimensional literacy that has allowed her to truly understand and address the problems that post-colonial Kenyans face. Her strong solution-oriented approach has allowed her to develop and refine operation of the GBM, which began simply planting trees, to produce a worldwide organization that works for sustainable development, human rights, and environmental conservation/restoration (among many others) …

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Medium Access Control Protocols And Routing Algorithms For Wireless Sensor Networks, Anirban Bag Jan 2007

Medium Access Control Protocols And Routing Algorithms For Wireless Sensor Networks, Anirban Bag

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In recent years, the development of a large variety of mobile computing devices has led to wide scale deployment and use of wireless ad hoc and sensor networks. Wireless Sensor Networks consist of battery powered, tiny and cheap "motes", having sensing and wireless communication capabilities. Although wireless motes have limited battery power, communication and computation capabilities, the range of their application is vast. In the first part of the dissertation, we have addressed the specific application of Biomedical Sensor Networks. To solve the problem of data routing in these networks, we have proposed the Adaptive Least Temperature Routing (ALTR) algorithm …

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Florida First Year Teachers' Perceptions Of Preparedness To Meet National Educational Technology Standards For Teachers (Net, Larry Bedenbaugh Jan 2007

Florida First Year Teachers' Perceptions Of Preparedness To Meet National Educational Technology Standards For Teachers (Net, Larry Bedenbaugh

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if first year teachers in Florida perceived they were adequately prepared by their preservice education programs to meet the National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers (NETS-T). The study was designed to gather data about first year teacher perceptions of personal technology proficiency and self-reported technology integration practices. The data were measured using the First Year Teacher Perceptions Related to Preparedness to Meet National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers (NETS-T) survey instrument. The sample (N=257) for this study was drawn from the population of Florida first year PreK-12 public classroom teachers from the …

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Internationalization Efforts At State Universities In Florida, Rachid Bendriss Jan 2007

Internationalization Efforts At State Universities In Florida, Rachid Bendriss

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Today's global environment poses more and more challenges for higher education institutions to provide learning opportunities that enable students to become globally competent and prepared to face the challenges of an increasingly global society. For many universities, internationalizing their campuses can help students acquire knowledge, skills, and experiences to be able to compete in the global economy and become productive members of a diverse world society. The purpose of the study was to explore the extent to which internationalization had been realized in Florida's public universities by determining (1) whether there was a relationship between articulated commitment and the level …

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A Comparison Of Attentional Reserve Capacity Across Three Sensory Modalities, John Brill Jan 2007

A Comparison Of Attentional Reserve Capacity Across Three Sensory Modalities, John Brill

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

There are two theoretical approaches to the nature of attentional resources. One proposes a single, flexible pool of cognitive resources; the other poses there are multiple resources. This study was designed to systematically examine whether there is evidence for multiple resource theory using a counting task consisting of visual, auditory, and tactile signals using two experiments. The goal of the first experiment was the validation of a multi-modal secondary loading task. Thirty-two participants performed nine variations of a multi-modal counting task incorporating three modalities and three demand levels. Performance and subjective ratings of workload were measured for each of the …

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Friend/Foe Identification Accuracy And Shooting Performance: Effects Of Prior Task Loading And Time Pressure, Kelly Ann Burke Jan 2007

Friend/Foe Identification Accuracy And Shooting Performance: Effects Of Prior Task Loading And Time Pressure, Kelly Ann Burke

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The current dismounted soldier and the soldier of the future will be "loaded" with more information processing tasks while they perform shooting tasks. It is conceivable that some increased level of cognitive tasking may be performed simultaneously with required shooting tasks. The effect of cognitive load on shooting performance has been previously examined (Scribner and Harper, 2001). This study concentrated on the effect of various cognitive workload demands on a friend-foe discrimination shooting task in a single- and dual-task scenario. In light of this, it is imperative that the soldier not be overburdened mentally, which may result in decreased survivability …

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Enhancing The Knowledge And Involvement Of Hispanic Families Of Children With Disabilities Through Specifically Designed Family, Mayra Camacho Jan 2007

Enhancing The Knowledge And Involvement Of Hispanic Families Of Children With Disabilities Through Specifically Designed Family, Mayra Camacho

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In 2005, the nation's minority groups totaled 98 million, or 33% of the country's total population. According to the U.S Census Bureau News (2007), Hispanics are the largest and fastest growing minority group in the country with 14.8% of the total population and 44% of the minority population. The same report indicated that the Hispanic population accounted for almost half (48%) of the national population growth between 2005 and 2006, yet, students from minority backgrounds, including ethnically diverse students for whom English is their second language, exhibit lower academic achievement when compared to the majority group (Lyon et al., 2001). …

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The Effects Of Eicu Technology On Clinical Outcomes Of Icu Patients: Analysis Of The Relationship Of Patient, Hospital, And Unit Characteristics To Proximal And Distal Outcomes, Michelle G. Chandler Jan 2007

The Effects Of Eicu Technology On Clinical Outcomes Of Icu Patients: Analysis Of The Relationship Of Patient, Hospital, And Unit Characteristics To Proximal And Distal Outcomes, Michelle G. Chandler

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Each year approximately five million people are treated in the nation's intensive care units making intensive care one of the most expensive components of the U.S. healthcare system. Of these patients, 400,000-500,000 will die annually giving the ICU the distinction of having the highest rate of mortality and complications in the hospital setting. Studies have demonstrated that one in ten patients who die each day in ICUs might survive if intensivists were present to manage clinical care and direct treatment plans (Randolph & Pronovost, 2002; Dimick, Pronovost, Heitmiller & Lipsett, 2001; Pronovost et al., 2002). The utilization of supplemental remote …

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Online Fundraising Trends Among Selected Business Schools In The United States, Joanne Chive Jan 2007

Online Fundraising Trends Among Selected Business Schools In The United States, Joanne Chive

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Many business schools in the United States have experienced a decrease in funding. To compensate for the reduced revenue and remain competitive, a number of these institutions have discovered new and creative ways to raise money, such as using the Internet. This study examined the impact that the Internet has on business school philanthropy and identified online giving trends among randomly selected AACSB International accredited institutions in the United States. A 20-item questionnaire was used to measure the results. Of the 107 business schools that participated in this study, 36.4% (n=39) raised money online. Data also revealed that 66.7% of …

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