Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Digital Commons Network™

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Discipline
Institution
Keyword
Publication Year
File Type

Articles 9991 - 10020 of 35662

Full-Text Articles in Entire DC Network

"I Don't Want To Hear About Your Dick": Communicatively Managing Stigma Surrounding Foreskin Restoration, Joshua Hartelt Jan 2018

"I Don't Want To Hear About Your Dick": Communicatively Managing Stigma Surrounding Foreskin Restoration, Joshua Hartelt

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Goffman (1963) defined stigma as an individual being unable to receive social acceptance because of a specific characteristic by being marked based on a characteristic, which can visible or invisible. This study examined how men undergoing foreskin restoration communicatively manage the stigma associated with restoring their foreskin. Through 13 interviews, I was able to thematically code using Meisenbach’s (2010) stigma management communication typology which served as an excellent theoretical fit. My results suggest that men undergoing foreskin restoration deploy several sub-strategies to manage stigma, as well as utilize multiple strategies simultaneously. Furthermore, my results indicate the possibility of new stigma …


Repairable Precast Buildings And Bridges, Abdullah Boudaqa Jan 2018

Repairable Precast Buildings And Bridges, Abdullah Boudaqa

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A new moment-resisting precast connection is developed in the present work through experimental and analytical studies to accelerate construction of bridges and buildings, to improve their seismic performance, and to quickly repair them through replacement of exposed reinforcement. The new precast joint detailing incorporates (1) detachable external reinforcing steel bars restrained against buckling, which is referred to as buckling restrained reinforcement (BRR), to develop plastic bending moments, (2) a steel pipe connecting the precast members through a pin connection to resist plastic shear forces, and (3) detachable mechanical bar splices to assemble and disassemble BRR at any time specifically after …


Proteogenomic Study Of Nitrogen-Fixing Cyanobacterium Anabaena Cylindrica, Yeyan Qiu Jan 2018

Proteogenomic Study Of Nitrogen-Fixing Cyanobacterium Anabaena Cylindrica, Yeyan Qiu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Cyanobacteria are gram-negative photosynthetic bacteria. In some filamentous cyanobacteria such as Anabaena cylindrica, every 10th to 20th vegetative cells can differentiate into nitrogen fixing heterocysts. Heterocyst can induce the neighboring cells developing into spore-like akinetes. The specialized cell functions and resourceful networks have contributed to the prosperity of cyanobacteria for over 2 billion years, but the genetic mechanisms for multi-cellular differentiation are barely known, especially for akinete formation. The heterocysts, akinetes and vegetative cells of Anabaena cylindrica were isolated for proteomic study. This study identified a total of 1395 proteins, including 664 proteins from akinetes, 751 proteins from …


Insecticidal Seed And In-Furrow Treatment Recommendations For Soybean And Sunflower, Brady Hauswedell Jan 2018

Insecticidal Seed And In-Furrow Treatment Recommendations For Soybean And Sunflower, Brady Hauswedell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Throughout the 2016 and 2017 growing season, field research experiments were replicated across South Dakota. Many times seed treatments are used prophylactic, which is neither good for the producers or the environment. Producers will be able to reduce production costs, if they only use a seed treatment when necessary. The purpose of the first experiment was to determine the effects of seed treatments in combination with planting date and seeding rate on soybean yield. To determine the effects, two years of field data from four eastern South Dakota locations were compared. Within each year and location we compared two planting …


Chronic Risk And Disease Management Model Using Structured Query Language And Predictive Analysis, Mamata Ojha Jan 2018

Chronic Risk And Disease Management Model Using Structured Query Language And Predictive Analysis, Mamata Ojha

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Individuals with chronic conditions are the ones who use health care most frequently and more than 50% of top ten causes of death are chronic diseases in United States and these members always have health high risk scores. In the field of population health management, identifying high risk members is very important in terms of patient health care, disease management and cost management. Disease management program is very effective way of monitoring and preventing chronic disease and health related complications and risk management allows physicians and healthcare companies to reduce patient’s health risk, help identifying members for care/disease management along …


Trunk Stability And Postural Stability In People With Multiple Sclerosis, Derek Tolbert Jan 2018

Trunk Stability And Postural Stability In People With Multiple Sclerosis, Derek Tolbert

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Multiple Sclerosis is a neurological disease which affects an estimated 2.5million people worldwide. People with Multiple Sclerosis often experience high rates of falls, which have been associated with age, disability, and increased postural sway. Additionally, people with Multiple Sclerosis often exhibit muscular weakness and poor responses to perturbations. PURPOSE: To determine if trunk stability and postural control are altered among PwMS and if trunk muscle activity is correlated with postural stability. METHODS: Ten participants with a physician's diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis (9 female, 1 male) were included in this study. Ten healthy controls were matched for age, height, weight, and …


The Impact Of Data Sovereignty On American Indian Self-Determination: A Framework Proof Of Concept Using Data Science, Joseph Carver Robertson Jan 2018

The Impact Of Data Sovereignty On American Indian Self-Determination: A Framework Proof Of Concept Using Data Science, Joseph Carver Robertson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Data Sovereignty Initiative is a collection of ideas that was designed to create SMART solutions for tribal communities. This concept was to develop a horizontal governance framework to create a strategic act of sovereignty using data science. The core concept of this idea was to present data sovereignty as a way for tribal communities to take ownership of data in order to affect policy and strategic decisions that are data driven in nature. The case studies in this manuscript were developed around statistical theories of spatial statistics, exploratory data analysis, and machine learning. And although these case studies are …


Location Optimization Of A Coal Power Plant To Balance Coal Supply And Electric Transmission Costs Against Plant’S Emission Exposure, Najam Khan Jan 2018

Location Optimization Of A Coal Power Plant To Balance Coal Supply And Electric Transmission Costs Against Plant’S Emission Exposure, Najam Khan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research is focused on developing a location analysis methodology that can minimize the pollutant exposure to the public while ensuring that the combined costs of electric transmission losses and coal logistics are minimized. Coal power plants will provide a critical contribution towards meeting electricity demands for various nations in the foreseeable future. The site selection for a new coal power plant is extremely important from an investment point of view. The operational costs for running a coal power plant can be minimized by a combined emphasis on placing a coal power plant near coal mines as well as customers. …


Compaction Testing Of Granular Material, Jason Jerome Weber Jan 2018

Compaction Testing Of Granular Material, Jason Jerome Weber

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The South Dakota Department of Transportation SDDOT uses the Ohio Highway Department’s Typical Moisture Density Curves for preforming compaction quality control on granular soil materials in junction with standard moisture density relations. The SDDOT also uses the Nuclear Density Gauge NDG, Sand Cone, and Rubber Balloon methods to conduct in-situ density tests. Compaction quality control of recycled pavements is conducted using test strips. The test strip method works well for large areas but becomes problematic for small areas. The ODOT Materials Manual states “Moisture-Density proctor curves and controls were originally developed to be used on cohesive (clays and silts) soils. …


Perceptions Of Green Eating Behaviors On College Campuses In An Urban Vs. Rural Setting, Gabriella G. Nowicki Jan 2018

Perceptions Of Green Eating Behaviors On College Campuses In An Urban Vs. Rural Setting, Gabriella G. Nowicki

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Background: Green Eating is a multidisciplinary approach to health in economic, public health, and environmental issues. GE has an evident impact on the quality of life in young adults, especially those on college campuses. Current evidence already supports an improved dietary intake in those who adopt GE behaviors. Objective: To determine if a university’s campus location affects first-year students’ exposure to green eating. We hypothesize that first-year students on university campuses located in urban settings are more likely to report GE awareness and practices than in rural settings.
Methods: First-year students were recruited for the GetFruved study in late summer …


Development Of Material For 3d Printed Habitats With Extraplanetary Applications, Taylor Wait Jan 2018

Development Of Material For 3d Printed Habitats With Extraplanetary Applications, Taylor Wait

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

3D printing, also called Additive Manufacturing, has increasingly become a focus for research because of the potential to replace complicated assemblies or complex parts with a single printed item. The space industry is very interesting in studying 3d printing with parts being tested and used on rockets, a 3D printer being installed at the International Space Station and is being developed for use in manned exploration of extraplanetary bodies to build habitats. To encourage teams from around the world to develop technologies and materials for autonomous habitat construction using minimal Earth exports, NASA created the 3D Printed Habitat Challenge. NASA …


Design, Implementation And A Pilot Study Of Mobile Framework For Pedestrian Safety Using Smartphone Sensors, Aawesh Man Shrestha Jan 2018

Design, Implementation And A Pilot Study Of Mobile Framework For Pedestrian Safety Using Smartphone Sensors, Aawesh Man Shrestha

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Pedestrian distraction from smartphones is a serious social problem that caused an ever increasing number of fatalities especially as virtual reality (VR) games have gained popularity recently. In this thesis, we present the design, implementation, and a pilot study of WiPedCross, a WiFi direct-based pedestrian safety system that senses and evaluates a risk, and alerts accordingly the user to prevent traffic accidents. In order to develop a non-intrusive, accurate, and energy-efficient pedestrian safety system, a number of technical challenges are addressed: to enhance the positioning accuracy of the user for precise risk assessment, a map-matching algorithm based on a Hidden …


Effects Of Standards-Based Grading On Students In Agricultural Education, Matthew Tripp Jan 2018

Effects Of Standards-Based Grading On Students In Agricultural Education, Matthew Tripp

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Standards-based grading is being discussed more frequently in the field of education as school districts either explore or adopt this grading method. This study examined the effects of standards-based grading on achievement and perceptions of students enrolled in high school agricultural education courses. This nonequivalent quasi-experimental study focused on how students’ perceptions of classroom feedback, abilities, and opportunities to redo assessments were affected by the implementation of a standards-based grading method. Participants in this study were students who enrolled in a quarter long Home Maintenance course that used standards-based grading methods to assess student mastery on specific content standards in …


Mechanisms By Which Mechanotransduction Promotes Proliferation In Keratinocytes, Chhavi Chaudhary Jan 2018

Mechanisms By Which Mechanotransduction Promotes Proliferation In Keratinocytes, Chhavi Chaudhary

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Chronic wounds are wounds that do not heal within 30 days and often they can last over a year. Interference in any of the wound healing stages may hinder the process. Some of the local and systemic factors such as infection, old age, diabetes, AIDS, and the regular application of corticoids may also have negative effects on the healing process. Cell proliferation is an important phase in epidermal wound healing in which surviving epithelial cells replicate independently into daughter cells through mitosis and maintain a balance between cell growth and cell loss during the cell cycle. Physical and chemical stimuli …


The Effects Of Bovine Viral Diarrhea Virus And Bovine Herpesvirus Type 1 On Monocyte-Derived Dendritic Cells, Jacob Sobraske Jan 2018

The Effects Of Bovine Viral Diarrhea Virus And Bovine Herpesvirus Type 1 On Monocyte-Derived Dendritic Cells, Jacob Sobraske

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) and bovine herpesvirus type 1 (BHV-1) are important pathogens that affect cattle. In this in vitro study, the main goal was determining the direct effects of BVDV and BHV-1 infections of monocyte-derived dendritic cells (MDDC) on cytokine mRNA expression. For the BVDV infected MDDC experiments, Holstein Friesian and Brown Swiss calves were included with a breed comparison with cytokine expression. Surface marker expression was also measured in BHV-1-infected MDDCs. For both viruses, a high virulent strain (1373 for BVDV and Cooper for BHV-1) and lower virulent strains (20508 for BVDV and Los Angeles for BHV-1) …


Techno-Economic Analysis Of Pv Inverter Based Controllers On Low Voltage Distribution Networks, Rupak Mahat Jan 2018

Techno-Economic Analysis Of Pv Inverter Based Controllers On Low Voltage Distribution Networks, Rupak Mahat

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Voltage-rise due to increasing installation of photovoltaic (PV) systems is a major technical issue in low voltage distribution networks. A cost-effective approach to address the overvoltage problem is to control the active and reactive power provided by the existing PV inverters. Prior research used electro-magnetic transient (EMT) simulation tools to develop inverter control strategies for overvoltage prevention. These type of simulation requires high computational resources and simulation time, and is therefore not suitable for long time period studies (e.g., annual) with many inverters. With the anticipated high penetration of PV, there is a desire for a suitable tool for long …


Weight Management Related Factors And Healthy Behaviors In Adults, Sumadhuri Pamarthi Jan 2018

Weight Management Related Factors And Healthy Behaviors In Adults, Sumadhuri Pamarthi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Obesity is an ongoing global pandemic that affects more than one in three adults in the United States. Being overweight or obese also increases the risk of chronic health conditions. Weight management does not only center on immediate weight loss but also on the proper maintenance of an appropriate body weight over the years. Methods of weight management include eating a healthy diet and meeting physical activity guidelines. Such weight management practices are important to ensure that the people suffering from obesity can decrease risks of morbidity or even mortality. Nevertheless, unhealthy weight management strategies might lead to unintended health …


Simulation Of Gas Dynamic Cold Spray Process, Sai Rajkumar Vadla Jan 2018

Simulation Of Gas Dynamic Cold Spray Process, Sai Rajkumar Vadla

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The utilization of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) as a study tool in the aerodynamics and turbomachinery industry reinforces efficiency in the design of aircraft or for understanding the flow through pipes. CFD offer tools to model different geometries and perform a more extensive study of the flow phenomena. This gives the opportunity to model a variety of geometries and analyze their behavior under different operating conditions. A similar approach can be applied to coating technologies. Coating technologies play an essential role in the manufacturing industry. Their ability to form layers of specific materials onto engineering components to enhance mechanical and …


Enabling Low Cost Wifi-Based Traffic Monitoring System Using Deep Learning, Sayan Sahu Jan 2018

Enabling Low Cost Wifi-Based Traffic Monitoring System Using Deep Learning, Sayan Sahu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A traffic monitoring system (TMS) is an integral part of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) for traffic analysis and planning. However, covering huge miles of rural highways (119,247 miles in U.S.) with a large number of TMSs is a very challenging problem due to the cost issue. This paper aims to address the problem by developing a low-cost and portable TMS called DeepWiTraffic based on COTs WiFi devices. The proposed system enables accurate vehicle detection (counting) and classification by exploiting the unique WiFi Channel State Information (CSI) of passing vehicles. Spatial and temporal correlations of CSI amplitude and phase data are …


Evaluation Of The Moisture-Induced Damage Potential Of Asphalt Mixes And Asphalt Binder-Aggregate Systems, Rajan Acharya Jan 2018

Evaluation Of The Moisture-Induced Damage Potential Of Asphalt Mixes And Asphalt Binder-Aggregate Systems, Rajan Acharya

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The current thesis presents the findings of a study conducted on asphalt mixes to evaluate their moisture-induced damage potential through testing of the plant produced asphalt mixes in South Dakota using local aggregates and commonly used asphalt binders. The moisture-induced damage potentials of the asphalt mixes were evaluated by conducting tensile strength ratio (TSR) and modified Semicircular Bend (SCB) tests. The effect of moisture on asphalt binder-aggregate adhesion was evaluated by conducting binder bond strength (BBS) test on binder-aggregate systems. The asphalt mixes tested in this study included a hot mix asphalt (HMA) containing hydrated lime (1% by the weight …


Application Of Drainage Water Management And Saturated Buffers For Conservation Drainage In South Dakota, Abhinav Sharma Jan 2018

Application Of Drainage Water Management And Saturated Buffers For Conservation Drainage In South Dakota, Abhinav Sharma

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Edge of field practices such as drainage water management (DWM) and saturated buffers can reduce nutrient transport from croplands to surface waterbodies. DWM uses stackable weir boards in a control structure to manipulate the water table depth throughout the cropping season and reduce the amount of nutrient rich water draining out from the field. Saturated buffers, on the other hand, use a control structure to divert water draining out from the cropland to a vegetative strip via a subsurface tile installed parallel to a waterway. For the saturated buffer systems, a combination of natural denitrification, nitrogen mineralization, and plant uptake …


Distribution, Ecology, Disease Risk, And Genetic Diversity Of Swift Fox (Vulpes Velox) In The Dakotas, Emily Louise Mitchell Jan 2018

Distribution, Ecology, Disease Risk, And Genetic Diversity Of Swift Fox (Vulpes Velox) In The Dakotas, Emily Louise Mitchell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The swift fox (Vulpes velox), a native species once abundant throughout the Northern Great Plains (NGP), has declined due to changes in land use, historic predator eradication programs, and predation by larger canid species. Currently, the species is estimated to occupy 44% of its historic range. In the NGP, the status of the swift fox varies by state, ranging from furbearer to endangered species. However, knowledge of the current status of swift foxes in the NGP is lacking due to an absence of systematic population monitoring. Improving the current state of knowledge concerning swift fox populations in the …


Cross Calibration And Validation Of Landsat 8 Oli And Sentinel 2a Msi, M. M. Farhad Jan 2018

Cross Calibration And Validation Of Landsat 8 Oli And Sentinel 2a Msi, M. M. Farhad

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This work describes a proposed radiometric cross calibration between the Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager (OLI) and Sentinel 2A Multispectral Instrument (MSI) sensors. The cross calibration procedure involves i) correction of the MSI data to account for spectral band differences with the OLI; and ii) correction of BRDF effects in the data from both sensors using a new model accounting for the view zenith/azimuth angles in addition to the solar zenith/view angles. Following application of the spectral and BRDF corrections, standard least-squares linear regression is used to determine the cross calibration gain and offset in each band. Uncertainties related to …


Evaluating Bighorn Sheep Herd Response After Selective Removal Of Mycoplasma Ovipneumoniae Chronic Shedders, Tyler J. Garwood Jan 2018

Evaluating Bighorn Sheep Herd Response After Selective Removal Of Mycoplasma Ovipneumoniae Chronic Shedders, Tyler J. Garwood

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Infected individuals vary in their contribution to disease persistence, and chronically infected individuals may sustain disease in a population. One disease that might persist in a population through chronically infected individuals is pneumonia in wild sheep. Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae (Mo), a pathogen of Caprinae commonly present in domestic sheep and goats, strongly correlates with pneumonia epizootics when it infects wild sheep populations. These epizootics can cause 40-100% herd mortality in an initial all-age dieoff, precipitate annual lamb mortality as high as 100% in following years, and sustain adult mortality long after initial all-age dieoffs. We conducted an experiment in the Black …


Improving The Nutritional Characteristics Of Plant Feedstuff By-Products Using Fungal Metabolism, Jacob Zahler Jan 2018

Improving The Nutritional Characteristics Of Plant Feedstuff By-Products Using Fungal Metabolism, Jacob Zahler

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Plant feedstuff by-products such as soy processing wastewater, guar korma meal, and sorghum hominy are very different, however, all possess a rich nutrient profile. Lessening their value is the presence of lignocellulose, plant anti-nutritional factors, and unfavorable protein profiles. Fungal conversion processes are an attractive approach to improving the value of these by-products by degrading detrimental fractions of each while simultaneously creating nutrient-rich cell mass. The aim of this research was to improve the value of each by-product for potential application in monogastric diets such as fish. Fungal organisms, both yeast and filamentous fungi, were examined for their ability to …


A Quantitative Environmental Assessment Of Incorporating Torrefaction Into Farming Enterprises In Eastern South Dakota, Dinesh Fuyal Jan 2018

A Quantitative Environmental Assessment Of Incorporating Torrefaction Into Farming Enterprises In Eastern South Dakota, Dinesh Fuyal

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The use of renewable energy sources has been increasing in the recent years due to population growth and environmental concerns. Biomass is a promising energy source that can be used to produce biofuels or torrefied pellets. Torrefied biomass may be used in power plants, industrial and residential heating, feedstocks for gasification, air and water filtrating, and soil amendment. The interest of torrefied pellets as energy sources for various applications has been increased in the recent years due to the concerns about energy security and environmental issues. This study focuses on the economic and environmental assessment of agricultural feedstocks like corn …


Comparison Of Historical Precipitation For Aberdeen, Ipswich, And Eureka, South Dakota, Uday Singh Kshatriya Jan 2018

Comparison Of Historical Precipitation For Aberdeen, Ipswich, And Eureka, South Dakota, Uday Singh Kshatriya

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The availability of water resources varies from time to time with the climate conditions. Keeping track of climate conditions would eventually benefit for the future predictions. The objective of this research was to compare and contrast the climate especially for Aberdeen, Ipswich and Eureka, South Dakota utilizing the historical monthly precipitation records and to develop the techniques that are reliable to estimate the missing data. For these necessary statistical analyses were performed using the monthly precipitation data from High Plains Regional Climate Center (HPRCC) for the annual and 8-Year periods for Aberdeen, Ipswich and Eureka, South Dakota. 63 water years …


Identification Of Macropinocytosis Regulating Proteins And Signaling From Macropinosomes, Louise Monga Jan 2018

Identification Of Macropinocytosis Regulating Proteins And Signaling From Macropinosomes, Louise Monga

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Understanding macrophage cell biology is important due to macrophages key roles in human health and diseases including proper immune function, wound healing, atherosclerosis, and cancer. Despite their importance, relatively little is understood about macrophage activation, growth factor signaling, and cytoskeletal regulation. This thesis presents data from investigations into mechanisms of macrophage growth factor signaling and actin polymerization for ruffling and macropinocytosis. Alt-R CRISPR-Cas9 method and dextran uptake assay were used to knock out individual genes (SHP-1, Lyn, Syk, BTK, Vav1) and determine their role in macropinocytosis and CSF-1R signaling. Dextran uptake was disrupted in SHP-1 and Lyn targeted knockout cells, …


Western Prairie Stream Fisheries: An Assessment Of Past And Present Fish Assemblage Structure, Biotic Homogenization, And Population Dynamics In Western South Dakota Streams, Stephen Jones Jan 2018

Western Prairie Stream Fisheries: An Assessment Of Past And Present Fish Assemblage Structure, Biotic Homogenization, And Population Dynamics In Western South Dakota Streams, Stephen Jones

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Biodiversity is declining globally, especially in in aquatic systems. Prairies are one of the most endangered ecosystem types in North America, and their conversion into agriculture or development as a result of urbanization has had negative effects on prairie stream fish communities. Continued monitoring of fish assemblage change and the population dynamics of prairie stream fishes will provide researchers and managers with valuable information needed to detect and mitigate past and future negative impacts on prairie stream aquatic ecosystems. Sampling was conducted in the mainstem and tributaries of the Grand, Moreau, Cheyenne, Bad, and White rivers within western South Dakota. …


Experiences Of Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder In Mississippi Community Colleges, Krystal Michelle Berry Jan 2018

Experiences Of Students With Autism Spectrum Disorder In Mississippi Community Colleges, Krystal Michelle Berry

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.