Digital Commons Network^™

Understanding How Adult Educators Apply Andragogy In A Correctional Educational Setting: A Case Study, Carl Jenkins Stephen

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Yes as your words

The purpose of this case study was to examine how adult educators apply the six principles of andragogy, by Malcolm Knowles with adult learners in a correctional educational GED program. The following six principles label adult learners as people who: (1) Are self-directed and intrinsically motivated learners; (2) Bridge life experiences with old knowledge with new learning; (3) Are goals-driven learners; (4) Expect experiences to be relevant to them; (5) Are practical learners; and (6) Want respect (Knowles, 1984). The study included qualitative research. There were nine participants involved in this study. Conversational interviews were conducted …

Design Of An Rf Cmos Power Amplifier For Wireless Sensor Networks, Hua Pan

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The Power Amplifier (PA) is the last Radio Frequency (RF) building block in a transmitter, directly driving an antenna. The low power RF input signal of the PA is amplified to a significant power RF output signal by converting DC power into RF power. Since the PA consumes a majority of the power, efficiency plays one of the most important roles in a PA design. Designing an efficient, fully integrated RF PA that can operate at low supply voltage (1.2V), low power, and low RF frequency (433MHz) is a major challenge. The class E Power Amplifier, which is one type …

Recognizing Patterns In Transmitted Signals For Identification Purposes, Baha' A. Alsaify

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The ability to identify and authenticate entities in cyberspace such as users, computers, cell phones, smart cards, and radio frequency identification (RFID) tags is usually accomplished by having the entity demonstrate knowledge of a secret key. When the entity is portable and physically accessible, like an RFID tag, it can be difficult to secure given the memory, processing, and economic constraints. This work proposes to use unique patterns in the transmitted signals caused by manufacturing differences to identify and authenticate a wireless device such as an RFID tag. Both manufacturer identification and tag identification are performed on a population of …

Fluorescence Enhancement Using One-Dimensional Photonic Band Gap Multilayer Structure, Jian Gao

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Fluorescence enhancement using one-dimensional photonic band gap (1DPBG) multilayer structures is demonstrated in this dissertation. Designed with proper refractive indices and thicknesses, the alternating high and low index multilayer thin film structures combine photonic crystal resonance and omni-directional reflection together to enhance the excitation light irradiance and improve the collection efficiency of the fluorescent emission light with different polarizations. Gallium phosphide was chosen as the high index material and its fabrication process was optimized. The field enhancement effect was experimentally confirmed for two designs with achieved enhancement factors of 50̃69 folds corresponding to TE and TM waves. The omni-directional reflection …

Crisis Communication Needs Assessment: A Delphi Study To Enhance Instruction For Agricultural Communicators And Other Stakeholders, Allyson Ceary Mcguire

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Agricultural communicators and industry stakeholders need to be able to develop, prepare and implement crisis communication plans to help assure the sustainability of the agriculture industry should a crisis event occur. A thorough exploration of possible options and needs for training crisis communicators is a needed study in the agriculture industry. Students learning to prepare for managing crises in real life situations are rarely taught in a hands-on, experiential manner. Students can read and analyze case studies pertaining to crises, but without having an actual crisis; little means exist for preparing students for real world situations. There is a need …

Factors Determining Media Coverage Of Meat And Poultry Recalls: Evidence From The Ap Newswire, Thais Fregonesi Carvalho

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Food safety is an important public health issue. Product recalls are an important part of the overall food safety system and occur when potentially unsafe products enter the marketplace. However, it is important that information about the recall ultimately reaches the public. This research assesses the publicity that recalls receive by the popular media. The focus is specifically on recalls of meat and poultry products. Publicity is measured by coverage in the AP Newswire. Data were gathered from the United States Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) and cover meat and poultry recalls from 1982 to 2009. …

Palestinian Film: Hyperreality, Narrative, And Ideology, Sarah Frances Hudson

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict have developed diametrically opposed national narratives and identities that are both predicated on the concept of victimization. These narratives have developed into simulacral narratives as the result of the nature of their development. This paper deals with the Palestinian simulacral narrative which bolsters societal values, particularly the value of victimhood, that are crucial to coping with the prolonged conflict. The Western media, at any given moment during the conflict, has either accepted the concept of Palestinian's as victims of the conflict and the Palestinian simulacral narrative, or rejected it. The media then produces a …

Portraying The Role Of Ezra Chater In Tom Stoppard's Arcadia, Joshua David Kellman

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In January of 2011 I began working on the role of Ezra Chater

in Tom Stoppard's 1993 masterpiece

Arcadia . The production was under the

direction of Mavourneen Dwyer. After a month and a half of

rehearsal we opened on February 25th, 2011, and began a run of

performances that lasted until March 6th. Ezra Chater appears twice

over the course of the play, first in Act 1 scene 1, then in Act 1 Scene

III, and his character is integral to the mystery that connects the past

and present scenes together. In this paper I will be detailing the …

Design Of An 866 Mhz On-Chip Frequency Synthesizer, Phaniraj Joshi

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

There is a strong need for stable frequency references with large tuning ranges in today's communication systems. While the crystal oscillators assure good frequency stability, it is not possible to achieve a large frequency range by tuning the passive components attached to them. Frequency synthesizers are usually used for this purpose because of their ability to produce a variety of output frequencies. The Phase Locked Loop (PLL) based frequency synthesizer is the most preferred of all types of synthesizers available because of its additional features like programmability, low noise and low cost as well as high accuracy and stability. The …

Creativity In Triadic Supervision: Using Mandalas To Impact The Working Alliance, Kelly Agnes Dunbar

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study investigated the use of mandalas as a creative approach with the potential to impact the supervisory working alliance within the context of triadic supervision. Participants (n=7) included master's level counselors-in-Training (CITs), all female, and ranging in age from 23 to 44. Data generated by the formal interviews gained support for using mandalas as a creative approach in triadic supervision as they revealed the potential to impact the working alliance and the goals, task, and bond therein. Of further importance was the finding that the bond between paired CITs in triadic supervision sessions was also impacted by the …

Disclosing An Invisible Disability During The Interview Process: A Qualitative Study, John Elias Sassin

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Rehabilitation professionals, persons with disabilities and employers were asked to participate in a focus group interview exploring the phenomena of disclosing invisible disabilities during the interview process. This Qualitative study examined disclosure of disability from each stakeholder's perspective in an effort to understand its impact on the interview. After transcribing the focus group interview and analyzing the data; five themes emerged reflecting each stakeholder's views on disclosure. The themes revealed the persistence of attitudinal barriers that people with disabilities face in seeking employment; if and when a person should disclose; what are the positive and negative aspects of disclosure and …

Single Mothers In College: The Effect Of Selected Variables, Rickey Booker

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Single parent mothers who are currently in poverty may find it difficult to find routes out of poverty and/or even to enrolling in college. Little empirical research has been conducted on low-income single parent mothers who attempt to enroll, persist and graduate college. The current research has shown that single parents are at a high risk of dropping out of college because of many barriers including poverty related issues. This study examined women who had at least one child or dependent, were in poverty, and were first time beginners in college. The purpose for conducting this study was to identify …

In Vitro Selection Of Aptamers Against Avian Influenza Virus H5n1, Jingjing Zhao

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Over $10 billion losses in the poultry industry were caused by avian influenza (AI) so far. Rapid and specific detection of avian influenza virus is urgently needed with the concerns over the outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5N1 influenza virus and cases of animal and human infection. Aptamers are oligonucleic acid or peptide molecules that bind a specific target molecule with good affinity. They show better thermal stability than antibodies. The goal of this research was to select DNA-aptamers as the specific recognition element of AI H5N1virus to be used in detection assays specific for field application. In this study, Systematic …

A Nietzschean Account Of Human Flourishing: Affirming The Will To Power Inside The Contours Of Friendship, Christian Joshua Roos

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this dissertation, I examine Friedrich Nietzsche's notion of the will to power, his account of friendship and his understanding of human flourishing. Through textual analysis, I offer a new way of interpreting the will to power, as the achieving of self-realization. The process of achieving self-realization is undergirded by the satisfaction of seven existential needs that are rooted in the paradoxical human conflict between instincts and consciousness. The existential needs are the need for a frame of orientation, the need for devotion, the need for unity, the need for rootedness, the need for stimulation, the need for effectiveness and …

Improvements On Just-About-Right (Jar) Scales As Product Optimization Tools Using Kano Modeling Concepts, Bangde Li

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Attribute Kano characteristics are useful in product design to prioritize development efforts. However, attribute Kano characteristics have not been discussed and applied to product optimization when using Just-About-Right (JAR) scales. Product optimizations without identifying attributes Kano characteristics can be misleading. The two objectives in this research were: 1. Determine attribute Kano categories using a modified classic Kano classification methodology. 2. Propose a method to measure attribute performance and identify attribute Kano characteristics to direct product optimization. Two methodologies of attribute Kano classification were investigated. In experiment one, a modified classic Kano methodology was employed to determine attribute Kano categories through …

The Effects Of Scheduling On Criterion-Referenced Assessments In Arkansas High Schools, Sheila Marie Trinkle

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to examine the differences in achievement on the end of course assessment in Geometry and the Grade 11 Literacy exam administered to students in Arkansas during the 2005-2006 and 2006-2007 school years. The three main types of scheduling are the traditional schedule with seven or eight periods; the A/B, or the alternating block; and the 4 x 4, or accelerated block. The traditional was utilized by 90% of schools in Arkansas during this time frame. The A/B block and 4 x 4 block were used almost equally, each representing approximately 5% of Arkansas schools. …

Design And Implementation Of Metamaterial Based Strain Sensor Using Aperture Coupled Antenna, Michael Brandon Buscher

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Strain sensors are used to convert the physical measured quantity of strain into an electrical signal suitable for processing by electronic equipment. Traditional strain sensors are comprised of a thin flexible film with a resistive pattern traced on the surface. As the sensor is deformed, the electrical resistance changes proportionally, giving a direct measure of the strain incurred. Metamaterials, particularly split ring resonators (SRR), lend themselves as a valuable tool for sensing applications due to their highly resonant nature and their very narrow bandwidth (high Q-factor). Due to very high field localization effects, they are extremely sensitive to both the …

The Adult Workers' Perceptions Of The Residual Effects Of Secondary Career Technical Education, Rosa Michele Henehan

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

The current research, The Adult Workers' Perceptions of the Residual Effects of Secondary Career Technical Education, asks the question: Are adult workers in the implementation and stabilization stages of career development influenced by their former experiences in the secondary career technical education (CTE) centers? Based on the theoretical foundations of Super's theory of career development and Mezirow's theory of transformative learning, the purpose of this sequential, mixed-methods relational study was to investigate the adult worker's perceptions of prior engagement in career technical educational opportunities. Examining the relationships between the CTE experiences and the adult worker's progression through the career …

Gender Equity And Differences In Support In The Vocational Rehabilitation System, Jennifer Faye Featherston

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Women with disabilities have different vocational rehabilitation (VR) experiences than men with disabilities. When they enter the VR system, they tend to be older, divorced, primary caregivers, more dependent on public assistance, and have less education and less work experience than their male counterparts. Given these differences, women may need to receive different treatment than men, yet the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Pub.L. 88-352, 78 Stat. 241, July 2, 1964) and the Equal Protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment state that men and women must be treated equally within the state-federal vocational rehabilitation system. Because they have been out …

Fabrication Of Horizontal Silicon Nanowires Using A Thin Aluminum Film As A Catalyst, Khaja Hafeezuddin Mohammed

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Silicon nanowires have been the topic of research in recent years for their significant attention from the electronics industry to grow even smaller electronic devices. The semiconductor industry is built on silicon. Silicon nanowires can be the building blocks for future nanoelectronic devices. Various techniques have also been reported in fabricating the silicon nanowires. But most of the techniques reported, grow vertical silicon nanowires. In the semiconductor industry, integrated circuits are designed and fabricated in a horizontal architecture i.e. the device layout is flat compared to the substrate. When vertical silicon nanowires are introduced in the semiconductor industry, a whole …

Determination Of Poultry Litter's Nitrogen-Fertilizer Value For Winter Wheat Production, Brett Lee Gordon

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Nitrogen (N) availability in poultry litter (PL) applied in the fall as a nutrient source for winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) has not been adequately characterized. Our objective was to determine a potentially available N (PAN) coefficient based on the inorganic-N fertilizer equivalence (FEQ) of fall-applied PL to winter wheat via field and laboratory research. Wheat grown at six site-years received 0, 84 and 168 kg N ha-1 as PL applied preplant and/or at-planting. The FEQ of PL-N was based on growth and yield responses of wheat fertilized with 22 to 191 kg N ha-1 applied in late winter as …

Photodetectors And Photovoltaic Devices Based On Semiconductor Nanomaterials, Jiang Wu

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Photodetectors based various nanostructures and plasmon enhanced solar cells are investigated in this dissertation. The motivation of the dissertation rise is driven by urgent need of both high efficiency photodetectors and solar cells.

First, quantum dot infrared photodetectors have been intensely investigated due to their promise in high performance photodetectors. However, the strain-driven growth of quantum dots has hindered the progress of quantum dot photodetectors. The presence of strain in the device presents complexity in designing as well as defects. Therefore, in this project, new designs of quantum dot photodetector structures are presented to improve the control over detection wavelength. …

Characterization And Molecular Analysis Of University Of Arkansas Peach, Prunus Persica (L.) Batsch, Flesh Types And Development Of A Post-Harvest Evaluation Protocol For Arkansas Peach And Nectarine Genotypes, Paul James Sandefur

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study determined the effect of pre-cold storage treatment on P. persica genotypes, developed a protocol for the evaluation of breeding selection and cultivar storage performance, and provided information on post-harvest performance of these individuals. Additionally, characterization of the peach and nectarine flesh types, validation of endopolygalacturonase (endoPG) DNA markers, and investigation of endoPG marker allele combinations associated with the slow-melting-flesh (SMF) trait were done.

Fruit from 30 individuals were harvested at minimum- and well-mature states. After conditioning for 24 h at 20 ◦C, all 2010 fruit were exposed to 2 min of 1 ◦C 100 ppm chlorinated hydro-cooling, a …

More Than Memories? Schema Transference From Media Characters To Real People, Hilary Ray

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study focused on whether personality traits and evaluations of television personalities are used to make inferences about new Social interaction partners. It tested the hypothesis that priming schemas of television personalities will bias inferences made about a stranger. The results were mixed. Participants in the experimental condition made more biased inferences about a stranger than did participants in the control condition. This transference was not influenced by participants' parasociability, and methodological limitations prevented conclusive study of the influence of affective evaluations in this effect. Future studies should attempt to increase methodological control and introduce a diverse set of measures …

Trafficking Of Women In Nepal: An Intersectional Analysis Of Organizational Narratives, Bhavana Mahat

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In Nepal, sex trafficking is usually associated with poverty, illiteracy and gender discrimination. To better understand the discursive dimensions of sex trafficking, this research examines the organizational narratives of the Nepalese anti-trafficking workers using the analytical framework of intersectionality. This study finds that the anti-trafficking workers' organizational narratives are influenced by both personal and institutional narratives. In their personal narratives, anti-trafficking workers recognize the multiple forms of discrimination shaping the victims' experiences, but the intersectional discriminations are rarely addressed in the anti-trafficking programs or services implemented by the non-profit organizations. After having identified sex-trafficking victims as experiencing discrimination based on …

Community Participation In Post-Tsunami Redevelopment In Aceh: The Process And Community Members' Perceptions And Preferences, Ichsan Ichsan

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation research is to examine the process of community participation and community members' perceptions of and preferences for the participatory approaches in Aceh post-tsunami redevelopment. The research questions are: (1) How has the process of community participation been implemented in the redevelopment of Aceh Province after the tsunami disaster? (2) What are community members' perceptions of community participation in the redevelopment efforts after the Aceh tsunami? (3) What are community members' preferences for the community participation approaches in the redevelopment efforts after the Aceh tsunami?

I employed qualitative and quantitative methods in this study. The four …

Islands And Swamps: A Comparison Of The Japanese American Internment Experience In Hawaii And Arkansas, Caleb Kenji Watanabe

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Comparing the Japanese American relocation centers of Arkansas and the camp systems of Hawaii shows that internment was not U\universally detrimental to those held within its confines. Internment in Hawaii was far more severe than it was in Arkansas. This claim is supported by both primary sources, derived mainly from oral interviews, and secondary sources made up of scholarly research that has been conducted on the topic since the events of Japanese American internment occurred. The events of Japanese American Internment in Hawaii and Arkansas are important to remember because they show how far the American government can infringe on …

Subcritical Water Hydrolysis Of Whey Proteins, Ashley Dawn Espinoza

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Hydrolyzing food by-products is a unique approach to potentially increase by-product value and reduce waste. An abundant by-product of cheese production, whey, contains all essential amino acids and some distinctive peptides with functional and nutraceutical properties. Typically, proteins from whey are tailored for specific uses by chemical or enzymatic hydrolysis; however, subcritical water hydrolysis is a novel alternative used successfully to hydrolyze various substrates. Nevertheless, minimal research exists on: (1) the hydrolysis of whey protein; (2) the incorporation of additives; (3) the hydrolysis of whole whey; and (4) the production of volatiles when using subcritical water hydrolysis.

Therefore, whey protein …

The Role Of Leadership In Facilitating The Performance Of Dispersed Teamwork, Jaime Beth Newell

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A mature body of research on leadership has investigated the impact of a variety of leadership behaviors and styles on team performance. This corpus of work is built on an assumption that team leaders can motivate, direct, and monitor teams by way of sustained, personal contact with team members. However, this assumption is being challenged by recent advances in information and communication technologies (ICTs). Use of ICTs has altered traditional team-based structures, enabling organizations to employ teams composed of members who are dispersed across geographic boundaries, while severing the direct, personal ties leaders have to team members. Recent reviews of …

The Relation Between Children's Perceived Containment And Parental Antisocial Behavior, Joye L. Henrie

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Researchers have invoked a variety of theories when discussing the relation between children's orientation to authority and the development of antiSocial behavior (ASB). Here, the focus is children's sense of containment. Previous studies revealed an association between perceived containment and child externalizing behaviors. In this study, the degree to which a child's sense of containment is related to parents' level of ASB was examined. One hundred sixty aggressive children and their parents participated. I hypothesized that ineffective discipline would moderate the relation between parent ASB and child perceived containment. I expected to find an inverse relation between parents' level of …