Digital Commons Network^™

Using A Reinforcer Hierarchy To Increase Compliance And Skill Acquisition, Bertilde U. Kamana

Honors Theses

The purpose of this intervention is to increase compliant behavior and skill acquisition in a child who has been diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) with the use of a reinforcer hierarchy. This hierarchy will be determined by conducting preference assessments. These assessments are established by allowing the child to choose the most preferred object of at least two objects which are presented to him by his tutor—a preference assessment can also be conducted by observing which objects or toys the child chooses to interact with the most in his environment. When the preference assessment is established, a reinforcer matrix …

Using Tag To Increase Play Skills, Melissa A. Boggs

Honors Theses

TAG (Teaching with Acoustical Guidance) involves using auditory stimuli as a reinforcer for correct behavior or correct components of a behavior chain. Theoretically, TAG is an effective reinforcer because a click (the auditory stimuli) is paired with back up reinforcers (tangible reinforcers and social praise) and consequently becomes a conditioned reinforcer. The current study assesses the effectiveness of TAG in structured playtime activities in a child diagnosed with autism. The behaviors measured include a receptive identification procedure, an imitative drawing procedure and a paperclip drop procedure. Each of these responses required multiple behaviors to be completed with the paperclip drop …

Insights Of A Wmu Student Into The Particularities Of Non-Profit Organizations: Observations From Cross-Cultural Experience In Two Organizations., Alyssa L. Lord-Hill

Honors Theses

Through my voluntary service in the non-profit sector I have been given the opportunity to experience the benefits that non-profit organizations provide and their missions and strategies to go about fulfilling them. In the course of completing my 6-month internship abroad and as founder of the German Club at WMU, these experiences have sparked my interests in non-profit organizational and success factors. Personal experience is the key to understanding and being able to accurately analyze a situation. Thus I will be using the two non-profit organizations to aid in the understanding of non-profit organizations and their counterparts, for-profit businesses. My …

Teaching, Writing, Writing Teaching: Reflective Journal Responses From Teaching Engl 1000, Christine Hamman

Honors Theses

A series of reflective journals and responses written to reflect on and improve in the teaching of English. Each journal was written following each class meeting of a Fall 2011 ENGL 1000 course, reflecting on the lesson, activities, and teaching for the day. From these journals, responses were written for 9 of them and lesson plans for those days were revised and added for the purposes of comparison. Using research in best practices in teaching writing, educational training, and personal experience, responses were written to each journal to condense the strengths and weaknesses of my teaching, to chart progress as …

The Impact Of Quantitative Easing Measures On Interest Rates, Financial Markets, And Economic Activity: A Case Study Of U.S.A., Aneesha A. Rai

Honors Theses

This study focuses on the impact of Quantitative Easing measures done by the Federal Reserve and its impact on the U.S.A, with a focus on interest rates, financial markets and economic activity. The Quantitative Easing measures studied are Operation Twist, Quantitative Easing I as well as Quantitative Easing II. The secondary research is conducted using event studies, and different perspectives of economists have been taken into consideration. The answer whether further quantitative easing should be pursued by the Federal Reserve is debated. A different step-by-step view is given into reasons as to why this quantitative easing has been pursued. A …

Theatre And Eating Disorders, Jeniece K. Salness

Honors Theses

Theatre is an excellent tool for education and instilling the will and ideas to make societal changes. Using the techniques and theories of Augusto Boal, Dr. Christine Iaderosa at Western Michigan University created musical titled “Food Prisons” to address the social stigmas and issue involved with eating disorders and disordered eating. These techniques positively model the actions and effects involved in eating disorders to show alternative routes to eating disorders and the effects eating disorders have on the person and those around them. The show was positively received when it was performed in 2012 when the audience and cast were …

Deriving Significance From The Capstone Experience, Christina G. Clark

Honors Theses

This thesis is a cumulation of my experience as a participant of Western Michigan University's COM 4500: Public Relations Program Development and an observer after completion of the course. I took the course in the fall of 2011 and in the spring of 2012 interviewed previous clients. I was most curious with what the process of the course was like for the clients and what recommendations they had for the future. The biggest take-away from my interviews is the notion that the capstone course is essentially the finish line for the students and the starting point for the clients.

This …

Rpe And Mode Of Exercise, Victoria Helmus

Honors Theses

The American College of Sports Medicine currently recommends that all individuals age 18-65 perform vigorous aerobic activity for at least 20 minutes 3 days a week, or moderate intensity aerobic activity for at least 30 minutes 5 days a week. Activities that fall under this category include, but are not limited to walking, running, cycling, swimming and elliptical machines. When an individual exercises, they have a sense of what their intensity level is based on how they 'feel'. Ratings of Perceived Exertion charts serve as a guide for this subjective thought process. There are wide ranges of intensities associated with …

Mobile Device Security: Current Challenges And Existing Solutions, Hugo J. Martinez

Honors Theses

The mobile device industry has increased exponentially over the past couple decades. This has created a great demand for the devices along with great dependence on their capabilities. There is an assortment of mobile devices among which can be found laptops, tablets, smartphones, and personal music players. All these provide a way of making personal productivity and business capabilities greater. While businesses and the public benefit from the capabilities of these devices, not everyone notices how valuable the information that they handle is. Today’s mobile devices handle information such as contacts, banking details, GPS location, and personal and corporate e-mail …

Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle Hvac Optimization, Jessica Hartl

Honors Theses

The objective of the proposed project is to convert the current heating ventilating and air conditioning system, or HVAC system, on the plug in hybrid Toyota Prius into a completely electric system. As the vehicle is now, the gas engine is required to provide heat loss for the forced air heating system on extremely cold days. The data, which has been gathered over several years, shows a drop in MPG equivalence from approximately 100-120 MPG on ideal days (70° F) to about 50 MPG equivalence on cooler days. This problem can be solved by increasing the effectiveness of the HVAC …

Reconstruction Of I-94 And I-69 Interchange, Andrew Dobbs

Honors Theses

On April 17^th, 2012, my team of Civil and Construction Engineers gave a presentation on our recommendation for the reconstruction of I-94 I-69 interchange. Our recommendation consisted of many aspects that were taken into consideration. Our analysis and recommendation is fully portrayed in our thesis.

In order to make a good design, we first had to understand the problems with the current design. All of the problems were located in one area of the interchange; this led us to define our design recommendation to only that area. Once the constraints and problems were identified, the preliminary horizontal design …

Optimization Of An Airboat Design, Adam P. Leppek

Honors Theses

Airboats are a common recreational vehicle in southern regions of the United States. A functional prototype of an airboat design was constructed utilizing the manufacturing processes and components available to gain knowledge and experience with the design process. The hull, rudder framework, seating structure, propeller shroud, drive train, and drive unit framework were fabricated at a machine shop. Remaining components were purchased, such as the engine, rudders, and propeller. Welders, mills, lathes, band saws, grinders, hydraulic presses, and power tools were employed in the construction. Drive train and drive unit framework was designed and analyzed using RomaxDesigner, a simulation software …

Reconstruction /Redesign Of The I-69/I-94 Highway Interchange, Manuel A. Torreira

Honors Theses

The focus of this senior design project was to reconstruct the interchange consisting in I­94 and 1-69, which were not up to Michigan Department of Transportation's (MDOT) standards. Many problems exist throughout this interchange, including flooding issues, current ramp configurations, low design speeds, and safety considerations. As a result, three alternatives were made and a unanimous decision from the client, faculty advisor, and our group was made in order to further analyze one of those alternatives. Once a certain alternative was selected, then the geometric designs were further analyzed.

The many factors that had to be taken into account were …

An Ethnographic Analysis Of The Struggles And Priorities Of Medical Missionaries Serving In The Dominican Republic, Randi Hafele

Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of Prenatal Exposure To Altered Melatonin Levels On Hippocampal Gene Expression In The Male Rat, Anna Uehara

Honors Theses

The stability of the circadian rhythm for mammals depends on the levels of serotonin and melatonin, neurohormones that signal for lightness and darkness, respectively. Disruption in the stability of neurohormones has been shown to be a critical factor in psychopathological disorders in humans. For example, altering levels of melatonin in utero through administration of melatonin or the melatonin receptor antagonist, luzindole, has been shown to cause changes in developmental growth and adult behavior in the male rat. Analysis of relative adult hippocampal gene expression with RT-PCR revealed differences in ARNTL expression that suggested abnormality in clock gene expression of the …

Elucidation Of The Pax/Six Gene Regulatory Network In Ephydatia Muelleri, Anna Rued

Honors Theses

The evolution of gene regulatory networks accounts for much of the diversity we observe in the animal kingdom. In particular, the Pax/Six/Eya/Dac gene network has been known to play critical roles in development of all bilaterians and cnidarians. However, this network has not been characterized in Porifera. These studies focus on tracing the evolutionary history of the PSED network back to the most basal organism in the metazoan phylogeny through demonstrating the presence of a direct gene regulatory network between PaxB and Six1/2 orthologs in sponges. To this end, putatitve Six1/2 cis- regulatory elements were identified while the PaxBprd transcription …

The Relationship Between Level Of Expertise And Holistic Processing In Chinese Character Recognition, Shirley Yin Ming Leung

Honors Theses

Evidence from past research suggests that when people process objects in which they are experts, such as faces and Roman letters, they usually engage in holistic processing which is the processing of multiple parts of a stimulus (Bukach, Gauthier, & Tarr, 2006; Wong et al., 2011). However, Hsiao and Cottrell (2009) found the opposite result such that novices used holistic processing in Chinese character recognition while experts did not. The current study explored the correlation between expertise and holistic processing of Chinese characters. We used the composite task to measure holistic processing of Chinese characters from English native- speakers who …

Government Influence And The Failure Of Fannie Mae And Freddie Mac, Aravind Mohan

Honors Theses

In 2008 two government-sponsored enterprises, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, were placed into conservatorship due to insolvency. The financial bailout of the two publically traded corporations came at the expense of the American tax payer. This study investigates the relationship between direct and indirect government influence and the increasing risk taking of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from the late 1990’s through their conservatorship in 2008. As government-sponsored enterprises Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have many special advantages that other publically traded companies did not possess. These advantages allowed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to increase their profitability. Theoretical literature …

The Role Of Collaborative Leadership In The Development Of Performing Arts Facilities, Alexandra Taylor Wiles

Honors Theses

The purpose of this study was to improve the development of performing arts facilities by maximizing participants’ combined capabilities and expertise through collaborative leadership. A single case study methodology was employed to examine the extent to which connective leadership, a form of collaborative leadership, was used in the development of Richmond CenterStage. Fourteen participants representing several involved organizations were interviewed and completed the Achieving Styles Inventory. Data analysis supported the hypothesis that connective leadership was not used in the facility’s development, and could have been used to improve the process through incorporation of diverse viewpoints of all interdependent participants.

Regulating Death And Building Empire : American Doctors And The Construction Of The Panama Canal, 1904-1914, Sarah Rhoads

Honors Theses

In May 1904, American engineers, doctors, nurses, and laborers arrived in Panama to begin work on one of the most expensive, challenging, and rewarding technological achievements of the twentieth century- the Panama Canal. At the time, the majority of Americans saw Panama as a wild tropical jungle, with dangerous diseases and a hostile climate. One of the most prevalent diseases in tropical regions, yellow fever, also known as yellow jack, was known to pose an enormous challenge to the success of the canal construction- the first mountain blocking Panama from successful U.S. intervention (see image above). In the popular U.S. …

The Role Of Histidines In Neurosteroid Binding Of Nmda Glun2b And D Subunits, Sarah Rhoads

Honors Theses

Implicit in cellular mechanisms essential for learning and memory, NMDA receptors are heterotetrameric members of the family of ionotropic glutamate receptors. Activation of the glutamate-specific receptor subunits results in the opening of ion channels, triggering an excitatory pathway, which can be moderated by certain endogenous and exogenous compounds. Previous research with the endogenous neurosteroids pregnenolone sulfate (PS) and 3α-hydroxy-5-β-20-one sulfate (PregS) have indicated that the binding of these neurosteroids to NMDA receptors containing the four A-D isoforms of the GluN2 subunit affects current flow through them1. Binding of PS to NMDA receptors containing GluN2A or GluN2B subunits causes an increased …

Addicted To Cigarette (Sales) : Taxing The Native American Cigarette Trade, Jeffrey Hunt

Honors Theses

In order to close a budget deficit, New York State raised its cigarette tax in 2010 to $4.35 per pack. Included in this legislation was a removal of the exemption of cigarettes sold on Native American Reservations from the tax. This paper develops a model of cigarette demand that focuses on measuring cross-price elasticity of demand in order to ascertain the effect of state-level taxation on the sales of Native American cigarettes in New York. The model indicates that reservations will lose about 79% of their cigarette business, and that New York State will raise about $447 million dollars more …

Determination Of The Atomic Resolution Structure Of A Dna Polymerase I Isolated From Rhodothermus Marinus, Natalie S. Omattage

Honors Theses

DNA polymerase I employs a multistep mechanism for sorting correctly paired nucleotides from mismatches. We aim to characterize reaction intermediates during nucleotide selection to better understand how this class of enzymes achieves high DNA replication fidelity. DNA polymerase I from R. marinus contains an unusual and disruptive proline in the mobile O helix near the active site. To characterize this enzyme, the structure of the large (5´-to-3´ exo-deficient) fragment of the R. marinus DNA polymerase I (RF) was solved to 2.95 Å (R = 0.234) using multi-wavelength anomalous dispersion. Alignment …

C'Est Ouf : L'ÉVolution De La Langue FrançAise Et Les ConséQuences Sociales, Hannah Kelley

Honors Theses

Cette dissertation vise à explorer le raisonnement complexe linguistique derrière la langue française officielle et le verlan, pour qu’on puisse mieux comprendre ce que le verlan est en train de faire socialement pour la communauté beur duquel il est venu. Pour nous situer d’abord un peu, on commence avec une histoire brève de l’immigration maghrébine (ou l’Afrique de Nord : l’Algérie, la Tunisie, et le Maroc) ainsi que les idéaux républicains de la France qui ont apporté la fierté légendaire en une langue française pure. Après, on examine la façon dont ses histoires interagissent aujourd’hui, ce qui laissent les identités …

Creating Werther’S Charlotte: An Academic And Practical Approach, Caitlin M. Cundiff

Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

The National Hockey League: An Econometric Analysis Of Attendance, Kendrick A. Hotte

Honors Theses

The National Hockey League (NHL) and professional sports as a whole are interesting to study when econometric models are applied. First, a thorough examination of current literature concerning both professional sports and econometrics will be reviewed. In addition, a full description of the data and its accompanying sources are discussed. Then, through the use of an ordinary least squares (OLS) regression and hypothesis testing, the role of attendance throughout the NHL as a function of win percentage is empirically tested. Using a demand equation for the attendance of hockey games over the past 15 years, this paper will focus on …

The Assertion Of Identity: Storytelling And Testimony In The Works Of Edwidge Danticat, Michael R. Kurban

Honors Theses

Haitian-American author Edwidge Danticat evokes the Haitian tradition of storytelling in many of her novels and short story collections. A tradition formulated by vodou religion and the amalgamation of African cultures, storytelling acts to entertain, educate and enlighten the people of Haiti. Additionally, her novels are often written in the context of traumatic events in Haitian history. While Danticat's works have been studied with focus on their depiction of storytelling and of trauma, little has been done on the restorative power that storytelling provides. In this thesis, I seek to examine the potential for Danticat's characters and works to create …

The Bucknell Community College Scholarship Program: A Documentary As A Performative Social Science, Sean D. Fortney

Honors Theses

Reviews Bucknell participation with the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation (a non-profit foundation with a mission to “help under-resourced students of exceptional promise reach their full potential through education".

Electronic Detection Of Ultra Cold Neutral Plasma, Nirakar Poudel

Honors Theses

The project was started with an objective to investigate the effect of radio fre- quency absorption in Ultra Cold Neutral Plasmas (UNPs). The plasma oscillation is density dependent and can be excited by using external radio frequency field. A homodyne circuit is used to detect direct absorption of the radio frequency waves. The radio frequency waves are applied to conducting meshes which lie on either side of the plasma. The meshes are effectively a capacitor, which together with inherent circuit resistance constitute a high pass filter. A small part of the gain and phase shift of the filter depend on …

A Web Application In Rest: The Design, Implementation, And Evaluation Of A Web Application Based On RePresentational STate TRansfer, William O’Brien

Honors Theses

It is no secret the Internet has evolved at an alarming rate since its public debut in the early 90s. What began as a simple way for users to publish files has evolved into a platform for impressively complex interactive applications. Now, applications once restricted to a single operating system are made available to all through advancements in browser technology and libraries. For a long time, Adobe has offered Photoshop as a far from trivial image editing program for around $100 to the Windows and Mac platforms. Recently, a web application emulating Photoshop’s features has been made freely available to …