Digital Commons Network^™

Making The Invisible Visible: Latin American Women With Undocumented Status And Their Experiences Of Intimate Partner Violence, Maria Teresa (Maytte) Restrepo-Ruiz

Master's Theses

This study aimed to contribute to the currently scarce literature on unauthorized Latina immigration and intimate partner violence expanding the analysis to include women’s reasons for migrating, their experiences during the migration journey, and the intimate partner violence once they arrived in the United States. Through these women’s voices, this study shows how the lack of migratory documentation affects the experiences of Latina immigrant women. Qualitative data were collected from 11 in-depth interviews with Latin American women that had an undocumented status and received services from five domestic violence programs in Connecticut. A thematic analysis approach was employed to examine …

Non-Destructive Evaluation And Maintenance Of Thermal Barrier Coatings, Martin P. Hawron

Master's Theses

Abstract Thermal Barrier Coatings (TBC) composed of Yttria-stabilized Zirconia (YSZ) ceramic are widely employed in gas turbine engines to insulate nickel-based components from the extreme temperatures of the gas stream. Over the course of extensive operation, these coatings delaminate and eventually succumb to spallation failure. Photoluminescence Piezospectroscopy (PLPS) is employed as a non-destructive evaluation (NDE) technique for the predictive determination of the operational lifetime of these coating systems. A mobile analysis unit has been developed to provide remaining life analysis for EB-PVD applied TBCs of engine-run turbine blades. This technology includes a Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) capability utilized for precision …

Nerve Fiber Diameter Measurements Using Hematoxylin And Eosin Staining And Brightfield Microscopy To Assess The Novel Method Of Characterizing Peripheral Nerve Fiber Distributions By Group Delay, Jorge Arturo Vazquez

Master's Theses

Peripheral neuropathies are a set of common diseases that affect the peripheral nervous system, causing damage to vital connections between various parts of the body and the brain and spinal cord. Different clinical conditions are known to selectively impact various size nerve fibers, which often makes it difficult to diagnose which peripheral neuropathy a patient might have. The nerve conduction velocity diagnostic test provides clinically useful information in the diagnosis of some peripheral neuropathies. This method is advantageous because it tends to be minimally invasive yet it provides valuable diagnostic information. However, this test does not determine characteristics of peripheral …

A Spatial Analysis Of Changes In Recreational Fishing Pressure On The Central Coast Of California Subsequent To Mpa Implementation, Morgan Ivens-Duran

Master's Theses

Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are implemented to address a variety of management concerns, including conservation and restoration of fisheries, but few studies assess how MPAs affect regional fishing patterns. Previous research suggests effort will intensify at MPA edges, but few datasets include sufficient pre-implementation data to quantify how MPAs alter fishing effort. We used recreational fisheries data collected by scientific observers aboard Commercial Passenger Fishing Vessels that target nearshore fish species, primarily rockfish. We assessed shifts in the spatial distribution of fishing effort over a 10-year period that includes pre- and post-implementation observations of the California MPA network along the …

Investigating Hemodynamic Responses To Electrical Neurostimulation, Sean Youra

Master's Theses

Since the 1900s, the number of deaths attributable to cardiovascular disease has steadily risen. With the advent of antihypertensive drugs and non-invasive surgical procedures, such as intravascular stenting, these numbers have begun to level off. Despite this trend, the number of patients diagnosed with some form of cardiovascular disease has only increased. By 2030, prevalence of coronary heart disease is expected to increase approximately by 18% in the United States. By 2050, prevalence of peripheral arterial occlusive disease is expected to increase approximately by 98% in the U.S. No single drug or surgical intervention offers a complete solution to these …

Element Detection In Japanese Comic Book Panels, Toshihiro Kuboi

Master's Theses

Comic books are a unique and increasingly popular form of entertainment combining visual and textual elements of communication. This work pertains to making comic books more accessible. Specifically, this paper explains how we detect elements such as speech bubbles present in Japanese comic book panels. Some applications of the work presented in this paper are automatic detection of text and its transformation into audio or into other languages. Automatic detection of elements can also allow reasoning and analysis at a deeper semantic level than what’s possible today. Our approach uses an expert system and a machine learning system. The expert …

Design, Characterization And Application Of A Multiple Input Stethoscope Apparatus, Spencer Geng Wong

Master's Theses

For this project, the design, implementation, characterization, calibration and possible applications of a multiple transducer stethoscope apparatus were investigated. The multi-transducer sensor array design consists of five standard stethoscope diaphragms mounted to a rigid frame for a-priori knowledge of their relative spatial locations in the x-y plane, with compliant z-direction positioning to ensure good contact and pressure against the subject’s skin for reliable acoustic coupling. When this apparatus is properly placed on the body, it can digitally capture the same important body sounds investigated with standard acoustic stethoscopes; especially heart sounds. Acoustic signal inputs from each diaphragm are converted to …

Experimental Study Of Delay Of Separation On A Naca 0015 Wing Model Using Synthetic Jet Actuators, Alan M. L'Esperance

Master's Theses

An experimental study has been conducted in the Cal Poly ME 0.61 m x 0.61 m (2 ft x 2 ft) subsonic wind tunnel of the effect of a piezoelectric synthetic jet actuator at 10% chord on a NACA 0015 finite wing up to α = 20° at ReC = 100,000. It was observed that the actuation is able to delay the separation over the NACA 0015 finite wing model up to α = 20°. For all the Cμ values tested, the synthetic jet excitation is effective at F+ = 1, 2.8, and 13.9 at α = 16°, but only …

The Relationship Between Mothers' Physical Self-Perceptions, Exercise Self-Regulation, Body Image Discrepancy And Sport-Specific Socialization Support For Their Daughters, Janelle K. Beilman

Master's Theses

Opportunities in youth sport are impacted by many socialization factors. In order to keepfemales engaged in sport, the study of additional factors that predict girls sport socialization is important. This study investigated the relationships among mothers’ physical self-perceptions, self-regulation of exercise, body image discrepancies (BID) and sport/activity socialization for their daughters. One hundred and four mothers (M= 44.932, SD= 5.8078) completed self-report questionnaires that assessed their physical self-perceptions, exercise self-regulation, body image discrepancy and support for their daughters’ participation in 20 different sports and physical activities. Results indicated that no significant correlations between the physical self-perception competence and most importance …

Predictors Of Major Commitment, Anna Jill Womack

Master's Theses

Contextual (e.g. job fit, job involvement), individual (e.g. job satisfaction, need for achievement), and demographic (e.g. gender, educational level) factors have been related to forms of career commitment (i.e. affective, continuance, and normative commitment), highlighting that the commitment one feels toward his or her career is a complex variable. Furthermore, commitment has been associated with intent to remain within a profession or organization (Bowling, Beehr, & Lepisto, 2006; Den Hartog & Belschak, 2007; Duffy, Dik, & Steger, 2011; Goulet & Singh, 2002), suggesting that commitment is an important component of retention within a career. Correspondingly, commitment to one's academic major …

A Description Of Vocalizations And Their Association With Mouthing Behaviors And Social Context In Bottlenose Dolphins, Tursiops Truncatus, Christina Elyse Perazio

Master's Theses

Dolphin communication is multimodal and incorporates physical behaviors and vocalizations. Dolphins often exchange information with conspecifics using different types of vocalizations, and these vocalizations are sometimes associated with specific behaviors. However, the relationship of vocalization type and mouthing behavior type has not been investigated. This thesis examines simultaneous acoustic and visual recordings of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) to determine the relationship between type of mouthing behavior and type of vocalization (whistle, whistle-squawk, chirp, moan, burst-pulse type A, burst-pulse type B, and click trains). The role of the social context of a mouthing behavior is also evaluated. Data were obtained opportunistically …

The Ontogeny Of Whistle Production In Infant Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops Truncatus) During The First Thirty Days Of Life, Brittany Leigh Jones

Master's Theses

The manner in which dolphin calves acquire their whistle repertoire is largely unknown. This paper focuses on whistle development in four bottlenose dolphin calves during the first thirty days of life in order to increase our understanding of the early emergence of whistles and whistle-like vocalizations. The acoustic parameters of whistle-type vocalizations (i.e., whistles and whistlesquawks) that coincided with a bubblestream emission from the focal calf and/or its mother were analyzed, as were the behavioral states of the mother-calf pair during the emission of such vocals. Mother and calf whistle rates are inversely related, with the mother whistling more often …

Fear Of The Colonized Other In Richard Marsh's The Beetle, Kelsie Leigh Dove

Master's Theses

This thesis argues Richard Marsh’s Victorian novel The Beetle offers a critique of British colonial practices through the reverse colonization experiences had by British characters in the novel. Intrusive, exploitative actions perpetrated by the British subjects in the novel invite reciprocal mental and physical invasions from the female colonized subject. These encounters serve as metaphors for British imperialism, and the fear and loathing for the colonized subject felt by the British characters reveals anxiety felt by Victorian England regarding colonial subjects. The monstrous acts of the colonized subject mirror the exploitation of British imperialism, which ultimately critiques the practice.

Assemblage Comparisons Of Living Benthic Foraminifera At Bathyal Sites Oiled And Un-Oiled By The Deepwater Horizon Blowout In The Northeastern Gulf Of Mexico, Valerie Joanna Cruz

Master's Theses

Live benthic foraminiferal assemblages were studied at contaminated and uncontaminated bathyal sites around the wellhead of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Samples collected in October of 2010 and 2011 and summer of 2012 were divided into uncontaminated (GIP 12, 21, K, and 25 and Obs0), moderately oiled (GIP 16 and 17) and heavily oiled groups (GIP 15), in which the TPAH concentrations ranged from 29 to 7,553 ng/g in 2010. Metric multidimensional scaling (MDS) and cluster analyses were conducted to compare all surface samples. Additionally, the heavily oiled site (GIP 15) and an uncontaminated site (GIP 25) were studied downcore …

Selling Tradition: Impression Management And Draft Animal Agriculture Of A Mississippi Farmstead, Matthew Corbin Lance

Master's Theses

This thesis is a case study of a family of farmers in Mississippi’s Piney Woods who use horse-drawn equipment to grow crops. This practice is notable in the context of a larger agricultural system that prioritizes mechanization (particularly the use of tractors). The production style and their use of local direct selling via farmers markets allowed them to thrive economically because they were able to tap into a niche market of consumers desiring an alternative to the modern, conventional agricultural system.

Other literature on Alternative Food Networks (AFN) discusses the issues of alterity and appropriation—that is, whether AFN ventures are …

Identification And Characterization Of Msab Gene Involved In Biofilm Formation And Virulence In Staphylococcus Aureus, Amelsaad Elbarasi

Master's Theses

Staphylococcus aureus is an important human pathogen that causes a wide variety of life-threatening infections ranging from minor skin and oral infections to severe infections, such as bacteremia, pneumonia, osteomyelitis, or endocarditis due to the presence and secretion of a large number of virulence factors that are controlled by global virulence regulators in complex networks. Furthermore, S. aureus infections have become a threat to public health because of their high potential to form biofilm, and their ability to resist a wide range of antibiotics has exacerbated further. Therefore, understanding the regulatory networks and developing a drug targeting these networks has …

Stereo Vision System Module For Low-Cost Fpgas For Autonomous Mobile Robots, Connor Citron

Master's Theses

Stereo vision uses two adjacent cameras to create a 3D image of the world. A depth map can be created by comparing the offset of the corresponding pixels from the two cameras. However, for real-time stereo vision, the image data needs to be processed at a reasonable frame rate. Real-time stereo vision allows for mobile robots to more easily navigate terrain and interact with objects by providing both the images from the cameras and the depth of the objects. Fortunately, the image processing can be parallelized in order to increase the processing speed. Field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) are highly parallelizable …

The Treatment Utility Of Hypothesis-Driven Functional Analysis Methods For Students Whose Behavior Is Elevated During Escape, Attention, Or Escape-To-Attention Contingencies, Chandler Erin Mclemore

Master's Theses

Current research indicates that function-based treatments, based on functional analysis data can be effective for decreasing an array of problem behaviors. The vast majority of the functional analysis literature has focused on single variables that maintain problem behavior. More recently, it has been hypothesized that perhaps multiple variables may maintain a problem behavior at a given time, for example; conceivably, escape and attention could maintain a child’s problem behavior simultaneously. Research regarding multiple variables, specifically the use of an escape-to-attention (ETA) condition has been limited. Furthermore, prior studies have fallen short in reporting treatment data. The purpose of the present …

Role Of Msaa Gene In Regulation Of The Msaabcr Operon And Biofilm Development In Staphylococcus Aureus, Ahmed Alzuway

Master's Theses

Staphylococcus aureus is an important human pathogen that causes wide variety of diseases ranging from chronic biofilm associated infection to acute life threatening infection such as bacteremia, pneumonia, osteomyelitis, or endocarditis, despite the progress with antibiotics used in the treatment of bacterial infections. Furthermore, increased use of prosthetic and indwelling devices in modern medical practices has led to increased infections due to S. aureus. Treating S. aureus infections have become difficult owing to its ability to resist most of the antibiotics; this problem is further exacerbated by ability of MRSA strains to form biofilms. Emergence of community-acquired methicillin resistance …

Examining Student Perceptions: Ethics And Misconduct In Today's Police Department, William Andrew Davis

Master's Theses

Police ethics and decision making are issues of concern to both academic scholars and police leaders. While previous studies have focused on perceptions of police officers, little research has focused on the perceptions of young people about police ethical decision-making. This study aims to capture such perceptions from a cohort of college students majoring in criminal justice. Students from an undergraduate criminal justice program (n=263) were surveyed to determine their attitudes toward various ethical components of police work, including the prevalence of misconduct and the impact of a college education on ethical decision-making. Moreover, the effect of successful completion of …

Jackson's Flying Dutchmen: The Significance Of The Royal Netherlands Military Flying School, Samuel Howard Ward

Master's Theses

From May 1942 thru February 1944, the United States allowed the Netherlands to train its aviators at Jackson Army Air Base. Known as the Royal Netherlands Military Flying School, the training the Dutch conducted helped rebuild the Royal Netherland Air Force and the air component of the Royal Netherland Navy. The Dutch military came to Jackson because they lost their territory to foreign invaders. Furthermore, the surviving members of the Dutch military felt compelled to endure and carry on the fight. The United States military selected Jackson Army Air Base because of its geographic location, the existing infrastructure at the …

Differences In Parental Spoken Language Input, Gesture, And Emotional Sensitivity Between Hearing Parents Of Deaf Children And Hearing Parents Of Hearing Children, Molly A. Nowels

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Quantifying Tissue Densities In Cone Beam Computed Tomography Utilizing Pixel Intensity Values, Meredith Brownlee

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

A Study To Determine Student Perceptions Of The Cal Poly Veterinary Clinic, Fallon Bliss Sheridan

Master's Theses

The purpose of this study was to determine the important benefits of Cal Poly Veterinary Clinic (CPVC) and establish areas of interest for the students at the CPVC. The CPVC is a student run veterinary clinic that exposes students to teachable hands-on veterinary experiences by addressing the needs of animals on campus as well as animals in the San Luis Obispo.

This study thoroughly investigated the student who have taken or are currently taking any of the five courses taught at the CPVC. The research was accomplished through a survey questionnaire. The student questionnaire was conducted by the researcher at …

The Role Of Carotenoid Cleavage Dioxygenase 4 In Flower Color Of The Allopolyploid Brassica Napus, Leanne Denice Fogg

Master's Theses

Allopolyploids are formed by interspecific hybridization and whole genome duplication, with the resulting organism contains multiple distinct subgenomes in one nucleus. Subgenomic interactions result in massive genetic and epigenetic reconstruction, contributing to variable phenotypic traits noted in newly formed allopolyploids. To better understand these mechanisms in the context of molecular biology, evolution, and plant breeding, plant biologists study the model organism Brassica napus (farmed as canola or oilseed rape). With white-flowering and yellow-flowering progenitors, flower color phenotype of B. napus presents an opportunity to examine subgenomic interactions. CAROTENOID CLEAVAGE DIOXYGENASE 4 (CCD4) is known to play a major …

Proliferation, Migration, And Survival Of Cells In The Telencephalon Of The Ball Python, Python Regius, Thomas B. Bales

Master's Theses

Reptiles exhibit neurogenesis throughout the brain during adulthood. However, very few studies have quantified telencephalon-wide neurogenesis in adulthood, and no studies have performed these investigations in snakes. Quantifying neurogenesis in the adult snake is essential to understanding class-wide adult neurogenesis and providing insight into the evolution of this trait. The thymidine analog 5-bromo-2’-deoxyuridine (BrdU) was used to quantify cell proliferation, migration, and survival in the ball python (Python regius). First, to determine the proper dose of BrdU for injection we subcutaneously injected 50mg/kg, 100mg/kg, and 250mg/kg into 15 adult male P. regius. We found the 250mg/kg dose …

Grid-Scale Energy Storage: A Proposed Control Algorithm For Sodium Sulfur Batteries, Daniel Spaizman

Master's Theses

With carbon dioxide levels in our atmosphere reaching record highs and 2020 quickly approaching, California is expected to pave the way for the United States in terms of replacing fossil fuel generation facilities with various renewable energy power plants. It is well documented that the inherent variability and limited duty cycle of renewables has hindered their growth. Energy storage technologies represent the bridge that can help us cross the divide from where we stand to where we must stand in the next 6 years. Utility companies value services such as peak shaving, voltage support, and frequency regulation, all of which …

Three-Dimensional Evaluation Of Root And Alveolar Ridge Width Of Maxillary Lateral Incisors In Patients With Unilateral Agenesis, Sharifah Alrushaid

Master's Theses

Introduction: The objective of this study was to measure the maxillary lateral incisor root dimensions and quantify the labial and palatal bone in patients with unilateral maxillary lateral incisor agenesis (MLIA) and compare them to non-agenesis controls using cone beam computed tomography. Methods: The labiopalatal and mesiodistal root dimension and labiopalatal bone width of maxillary lateral incisors were assessed on pre-treatment and post-treatment cone beam computed tomography scans of 23 subjects (mean age 14.5 years, 17 females and 6 males) with maxillary lateral incisor agenesis and 23 gender-matched subjects (mean age 13.5 years, 17 females and 6 males) with no …

Three-Dimensional Analysis Of The Impacted Maxillary Canine: Localization And Assessment Of Severity, Greg Ross

Master's Theses

Aims & Objectives: The objective of this study is to determine the location of impacted or unerupted maxillary canines and evaluate their position and severity as they correlate to the clinical aspect of orthodontics. In addition, we propose to identify specific regions in the maxilla where impacted canines are more common, and to evaluate these methods for reliability and accuracy. Finally, we intend to introduce a 3-D classification for maxillary impacted canines.

Materials & Methods: We reviewed approximately 1000 CBCT images of patients with impacted maxillary canines. From these images, 207 CBCT’s, with 314 unerupted canines were selected to be …

The Role Of Calcium Transients In The Collective Migration Of Goldfish Epithelial Keratocytes, Chelsea E. Willet

Master's Theses

Collective migration is a critical biological process that involves the coordinated migration of a group of cells connected via adherens junctions. These cell-cell adhesions are regulated by intracellular and extracellular calcium, and require controlled turnover in order to maintain the structural integrity of migrating cell sheets. In single fish keratocytes, intracellular calcium signaling via stretch-activated calcium channels facilitates migration by regulating cytoskeletal contractility and cell-substratum adhesion turnover. The role of calcium signaling in collectively migrating keratocyte sheets remains unknown. In this study, we investigate the effects of modulating the frequency of calcium transients in goldfish keratocyte sheets, using EGTA and …