Digital Commons Network^™

The Utility Of Foraminifera In Documenting Sediment Provenance For Overwash Deposits: A Case Study Using Sediments Deposited By Tropical Cyclone Pam In Vanuatu, Thomas Kosciuch

Master's Theses

Tropical cyclone inundation is a major threat to the highly exposed islands of the South Pacific. This vulnerability was highlighted in March 2015 when Tropical Cyclone (TC) Pam made landfall on Vanuatu as a Category 5 storm, impacting coastlines with storm surges that produced high water marks up to 7 m above MSL and deposited sediments up to 400 m inland. We examined the foraminiferal assemblages contained within TC Pam sediments at two locations in Vanuatu: a mixed-carbonate embayment (Manuro), and a volcaniclastic beach (Port Resolution Bay; PRB). At Manuro, the TC Pam sediments were up to 10 cm thick …

"And A Sad Ditty Of This Story Born": Regeneration Through Decay In John Keats's Isabella, Erica Van Schaik

Master's Theses

John Keats’s Isabella; or the Pot of Basil (1818) has been read, like many of Keats’s of works, as an allegory for the death that surrounded the poet and his life’s tragic circumstances. Isabella has also been studied in regard to its gothic horror elements. Such previous readings identify a theme of mortality and decay within the poem, but I argue these themes serve a larger purpose, one related to the possibilities created by regeneration. Isabella, a young woman whose lover, Lorenzo, is murdered by her own brothers, removes Lorenzo’s head from his corpse and places it in a potted …

Development Of A Rotordynamic Signal Processing Matlab Interface And A Two-Disk Rotor Model, David L. Baker

Master's Theses

Using MATLAB and a National Instruments data acquisition card, a signal processing program meant to monitor the behavior of rotordynamic systems in real-time was developed and tested. By using traditional analysis methods in this field of engineering, commonly desired data representations such as bode, polar, orbit, full spectrum plots were able to be produced to a very high accuracy. Additional capabilities offered by this application are slow roll compensation, synchronous and sub-synchronous filtering, and true three dimensional plotting. The verification of this program was done by comparing the results to the ones acquired with Bently Nevada’s “Automated Diagnostics for Rotating …

Genealogy Extraction And Tree Generation From Free Form Text, Timothy Sui-Tim Chu

Master's Theses

Genealogical records play a crucial role in helping people to discover their lineage and to understand where they come from. They provide a way for people to celebrate their heritage and to possibly reconnect with family they had never considered. However, genealogical records are hard to come by for ordinary people since their information is not always well established in known databases. There often is free form text that describes a person’s life, but this must be manually read in order to extract the relevant genealogical information. In addition, multiple texts may have to be read in order to create …

Smart Dc/Dc Wall Plug Design For The Dc House Project, Richard Sinclair Liu

Master's Theses

The present day duplex wall receptacle in the United States provides 120Vrms AC at 60Hz, which comes from a standard set for AC loads by the National Electrical Manufacturers Association. With a DC system, such as what is used in the DC House project currently being developed at Cal Poly, providing DC power to DC loads presents a technical challenge due to the different required DC operating voltages of the loads. This thesis entails the design and construction of a Smart DC/DC Wall Plug, which can automatically adjust its output voltage to match any required DC load voltages. In the …

Influences Of Anthropogenic Noise On Flight Initiation Distance, Foraging Behavior, And Feeder Community Structure Of Wild Birds, Alissa R. Petrelli

Master's Theses

Throughout the world, birds represent the primary type of wildlife that people experience on a daily basis. However, a growing body of evidence suggests that alterations to the acoustic environment can negatively affect birds as well as humans in a variety of ways, and altered acoustics from noise pollution has the potential to influence human interactions with wild birds. In this thesis, I investigated how anthropogenic noise impacts daily behavior as well as community structure of wild birds. In the first component of this thesis, I assessed the distance at which a bird initiates flight or escape behavior (i.e., flight …

Computer-Aided Diagnoses (Cad) System: An Artificial Neural Network Approach To Mri Analysis And Diagnosis Of Alzheimer's Disease (Ad), Berizohar Padilla Cerezo

Master's Theses

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a chronic and progressive, irreversible syndrome that deteriorates the cognitive functions. Official death certificates of 2013 reported 84,767 deaths from Alzheimer’s disease, making it the 6th leading cause of death in the United States. The rate of AD is estimated to double by 2050. The neurodegeneration of AD occurs decades before symptoms of dementia are evident. Therefore, having an efficient methodology for the early and proper diagnosis can lead to more effective treatments.

Neuroimaging techniques such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can detect changes in the brain of living subjects. Moreover, medical imaging techniques are the …

What Do Work Value Differentiation And Profile Elevation Predict?, Jinhao Chi

Master's Theses

Using a sample of 251 college students, it was found that 1) when differentiation (D) of work values was calculated using three indices, high-low D, Iachan D, and variance D, only Iachan D positively related to indecision but high-low D and variance D did not, 2) none of the three indices of D related to career maturity, 3) work values profile elevation (PE) positively related to extraversion, openness, and negatively related to depressive symptoms and career indecision but was unrelated to career certainty and neuroticism and 4) work values PE moderated the relationship between Iachan D and career indecision. The …

The Effects Of Real-Time Visual Performance Feedback Using A Tier Approach For Increasing Behavior Specific Praise On Teachers, Elizabeth Lown

Master's Theses

A number of studies have found behavior specific praise to be effective in increasing academically engaged behaviors and decreasing disruptive behaviors of students. The proposed study evaluated the effects of real-time visual performance feedback as a strategy for promoting teacher use of behavior-specific praise. An ABCBC design was utilized to determine the efficacy of real-time visual performance feedback in comparison to delayed visual performance feedback. The primary dependent variable measured was teacher use of behavior-specific praise. Additionally, student outcomes were assessed to determine the relationship between teacher use of behavior-specific praise and student behavior. The results from the study provide …

The Role Of Pain Persistence In The Association Between Negative Urgency And Suicidal Behavior, Hyejin Jin

Master's Theses

Impulsivity has been identified as an important component of suicidal behavior (Mann et al., 1999) but the relationship has been shown to be indirect through painful and provocative events (PPEs; Bender, Gordon, Bresin, Joiner, 2011). Negative urgency (NU) is a subscale of impulsivity (Cyders et al., 2007) that has been associated with high engagement of PPEs such as non-suicidal self-injury because individuals high in NU are highly motivated to eliminate the aversive emotion (Anestis & Joiner, 2011). Past research found that repeated PPEs may increase the capability for suicide by changing how one responds to pain, thereby increasing their pain …

Women In Wartime Shipyards: Operating A Drill Press Was Like Using An Egg Beater, Carol A. Strohmetz

Master's Theses

This research examines the duality of the roles of American women during World War II. The research draws upon oral histories, newspaper accounts and advertisements, music and films of the time, letters and family scrapbooks, and primary and secondary sources. Most prior research focuses on either women in the workforce or women in the home. This research synthesizes all aspects of the lives of women as they navigated the hostile terrain of the male workforce and continued to perform the duties assigned to them by society. This research highlights the multiple roles that women successfully executed as they cared for …

#Sayhername: Negotiating Issues Of Victimhood, Violence, And Visibility, Carol Ann Jackson

Master's Theses

This thesis analyses both news articles and tweets discussing #SayHerName and both implicit and explicit discussions of race, gender, and sexuality. Prior research on media representations of race, gender and violence has found that black women have been denied visibility as victims in unilateral media portrayals of gendered violence, which has contributed to the social problem of black women’s marginalization as their experiences of injustice become invalidated. This denial is not directly stated, rather it functions through a use of controlling images which reproduce racist, sexist, and heteronormative media messages by naturalizing black women as devious, promiscuous, and aggressive. This …

Evaluating The Success Of Making Equitable, Predictable, And Transparent Development Decisions By Encouraging Community And Stakeholder Collaboration Through Two Participatory Design Case Studies, Samantha Stewart

Master's Theses

The purpose of this thesis is to use participatory design strategies throughout the design process in order to make fair, transparent, and successful design outcomes. Participatory design is an approach that encourages actively involving all stakeholders, clients, community members, and site users to make sure the solution meets their desires and needs. This approach is used in two community based projects; the Ecological Screen in Fairfield, CT and Wolcott Park in West Hartford, CT. For my research I completed a series of stakeholder and client meetings, public workshops, and surveys in order to educate the public and build a strong …

Factors Associated With Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (Prep) Adherence Self-Efficacy Among High-Risk Drug Users In Treatment, Chanchala Tiwari

Master's Theses

Background: Recent studies on Pre-exposure prophylaxis treatment (PrEP) has received significant recognition as a promising preventive strategy among high-risk individuals. Although a significant amount of research has been conducted on willingness of PrEP use, and NCI as predictors of HIV risk behavior, no study to date, has explored the impact of various motivation factors along with the use of internet & technology devices and psychological aspects on PrEP adherence self-efficacy. So, the objectives of thesis analyses were to examine whether various motivation factors, psychological factors, and communication technology predicts PrEP adherence self-efficacy. Method: The study was conducted among 400 HIV-negative …

Selection Criteria And Referral Patterns Of Clinicians Utilizing Cbct At Uconn Health Center, Jenna Fewins

Master's Theses

The most recent Food and Drug Administration (FDA)/American Dental Association (ADA) guidelines on dental radiograph examinations were released in 2012.¹ Cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) is a three dimensional radiographic exam first introduced in the in the early 2000s.⁷ In the 2012 guidelines, CBCT was excluded from the criteria; the guidelines were meant only for “standard dental imaging techniques of intraoral and common extraoral examinations, excluding cone-beam computed tomography.”¹

CBCT is in the armamentarium of radiographs utilized in general dentistry and can be ordered by a dentist, a dental specialist, or dental student. There is a large …

Enhancing Phylogenetic Resolution With Taxonomic And Geographic Characterization Of The Chilean Species Of The Cicada Genus Tettigades, Katherine Nazario

Master's Theses

The Patagonian cicada genus Tettigades, although abundant and diverse, was poorly documented until Torres (1958) reviewed the species of the genus, describing 17 new species and redescribing others. His review provided useful insights on variation and distribution of species in the genus. However, despite Torres’ efforts, some species descriptions remained vague and many lacked descriptions of morphological variation within or among populations.

The goal of this thesis is to compile, evaluate, and integrate previous work with new data to serve as a reference for future studies of this genus. Morphological, geographical, and molecular data are combined in order to treat …

Early Empirical Evidence For The Effects Of Adaptive Ramp Metering On Measures Of Travel Time Reliability, Travis Charles Low

Master's Theses

Adaptive ramp metering (ARM) is a critical component of smart freeway corridors under an active traffic management portfolio. While improving capacity through smart corridors and application of proactive traffic management solutions is less costly and easier to deploy than freeway widening, conversion to smart corridors still represents a sizable investment for a state department of transportation. Early evidence of improvements following these projects can be valuable to agencies. However, in the U.S. there have been limited evaluations, of smart corridors in general and ARM in particular, based on real operational data. This thesis explores travel time reliability measures for the …

Exploring The Relationship Of Urban Form And Mental Health In The 500 Largest Cities Of The United States, Daniel Sam Harrison

Master's Theses

Sustainable development efforts frequently focus on understanding and promoting the factors that influence health and wellbeing. Urban environments have received attention in recent years as spaces which can increase psychological distress. Despite hypothesized reports of urban environments being less conducive to good mental health then natural environments, few studies have investigated the effects of urban form characteristics (size, density, nuisances, transportation, and housing characteristics) and mental health measures at the city level. Using 2014 data from the 500 largest cities in the United States, this thesis evaluates the relationship between urban form and aggregate self-report scores of poor mental health. …

Spacecraft Trajectory Optimization Suite (Stops): Optimization Of Low-Thrust Interplanetary Spacecraft Trajectories Using Modern Optimization Techniques, Shane P. Sheehan

Master's Theses

The work presented here is a continuation of Spacecraft Trajectory Optimization Suite (STOpS), a master’s thesis written by Timothy Fitzgerald at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. Low-thrust spacecraft engines are becoming much more common due to their high efficiency, especially for interplanetary trajectories. The version of STOpS presented here optimizes low-thrust trajectories using the Island Model Paradigm with three stochastic evolutionary algorithms: the genetic algorithm, differential evolution, and particle swarm optimization. While the algorithms used here were designed for the original STOpS, they were modified for this work.

The low-thrust STOpS was successfully validated with two trajectory problems …

X Chromosome Dosage Compensation And Gene Expression In The Sheep, Kaleigh Flock

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Key Differences Between Hepatic And Intestinal Apoc3 Regulation And Expression, And Implications For Cardiovascular Disease Risk, Gabrielle West

Master's Theses

In the intestine, apoC-III delays chylomicron secretion, and causes a decrease in chylomicron size. Once apoC-III is in circulation, apoC-III delays triglyceride-rich remnants clearance by inhibiting lipoprotein lipase and liver low-density lipoprotein receptor. In humans, high levels of plasma apoC-III directly result in hypertriglyceridemia. ApoC-III is a critical cardiovascular risk factor, and humans expressing null mutations in apoC-III are robustly protected from cardiovascular disease. Because of its critical role in elevating plasma lipids and CVD risk, the factors that regulate apoC-III expression in the liver have been determined, and include glucose, insulin (through FoxO1), and dietary fat. Considerably less is …

Physicians’ Opinions On Connecticut’S Prescription Drug Monitoring Program, Carolyn Kwiat

Master's Theses

Background: The increase in prescription opiate misuse has become one of the largest public health crises facing the United States. Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs (PDMPs) are large online databases that states use to monitor prescribing and filling of controlled drugs by physicians and pharmacies to identify patients who are misusing prescription drugs and to reduce the prevalence of opioids misuse. However, the literature is not conclusive as to whether or not PDMPs are effective in decreasing opioid misuse, and the rates of PDMP usage among physicians remains low, even in states where usage is mandatory.

Objectives: To investigate physicians' attitudes …

Combined Universal Kriging And Kalman Filter Techniques To Improve Wind Speed Prediction For Northeastern U.S., Alexander Samalot

Master's Theses

The scope of this study is to identify and improve wind speed prediction errors for storms that have impacted the Northeastern United States during 2003-2014. Accurate wind speed prediction under storm occurrences is significant to identify and assess impacts to the environment and critical infrastructure. Post-processing of a numerical weather prediction model (Weather Research and Forecasting-WRF) was used in the form of Universal Kriging for spatial interpolation and Kalman Filter for bias reduction. Two strategies for using the Kalman Filter in combination with Universal Kriging are investigated and assessed. Universal Kriging of Kalman Filter corrections reduced all error statistics of …

3-D Coverage Path Planning For Underwater Terrain Mapping, Zongyuan Shen

Master's Theses

This thesis presents an autonomous approach of 3-D coverage of underwater terrain using multi-level coverage trees. An autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) equipped with multi-beam sonar sensors, Doppler velocity log (DVL) and inertial measurement unit (IMU) sensors is used to achieve this goal. The underwater 3-D search space is represented by a multi-level coverage tree which is generated online based on the obstacle information collected by the AUV. The nodes of the tree correspond to safe sub-areas for AUV navigation which are identified based on obstacle density in neighborhood of free cells. Standard tree traversal strategies like depth-first-search (DFS) and breath-first-search …

Entap: Software To Improve The Quality And Functional Annotation Of De Novo Assembled Non Model Eukaryotic Transcriptomes, Alexander Hart

Master's Theses

EnTAP (Eukaryotic Non-Model Transcriptome Annotation Pipeline) was designed to improve the accuracy, speed, and flexibility of functional gene annotation for de novo assembled transcriptomes in non-model Eukaryotes. This software package addresses the fragmentation and related assembly issues that result in inflated transcript estimates and poor annotation rates. Following filters applied through assessment of true expression and frame selection, open-source tools are leveraged to functionally annotate the translated proteins. Downstream features include fast similarity search across three repositories, protein domain assignment, orthologous gene family assessment, and Gene Ontology term assignment. The final annotation integrates across multiple databases and selects an optimal …

The Role Of Bmp Signaling In Mediating Stimulatory Effects Of Fgf-Fgfr Signaling On Odontoblast Differentiation In Dental Pulp, Karen Sagomonyants

Master's Theses

Odontoblast differentiation is dependent on multiple signaling molecules, including growth factors stored in the extracellular dentin matrix. Our previous studies have demonstrated that Fibroblast Growth Factor 2 (FGF2) exerted stage-specific effects on odontoblast differentiation in primary dental pulp cultures. FGF2 stimulated differentiation of functional odontoblasts expressing high levels of Dmp1 from early progenitors but inhibited the terminal differentiation of functional odontoblasts to fully differentiated odontoblasts expressing high levels of Dspp. These stimulatory effects involved activation of FGFR and ERK1/2, and increased levels of expression of Bmp2, Runx2, and Osx (components of BMP signaling) suggesting the involvement of …

Privacy Leakage Via Write-Access Patterns To The Main Memory, Tara M. John

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Impacts Of De-Icing Salt Contamination Of Groundwater In A Shallow Urban Aquifer, Lukas Mcnaboe

Master's Theses

No abstract provided.

Investigating Program Evaluation Implemented By Rural Education Systems To Determine The Efficacy Of Speech-Language Telepractice Services, Allyson Doreen Montgomery

Master's Theses

Given the importance of providing speech-language services to students in rural areas, school districts have begun adopting telepractice as a primary service delivery model (American Speech-Language and Hearing Association [ASHA], n.d.b; Forducey, 2006; & Polovoy, 2008). However, as the demand for telepractice grows, so does the need for a strong method of program evaluation (ASHA, 2005a). The purpose of this study was to investigate the methodologies district level administrators use to evaluate effectiveness and ensure the validity of telepractice services. Two district level administrators from distinct rural educational cooperatives participated in this study. Both were from two distinctive Midwestern states …

The Differential Expression Of Gene Cohorts Over The Course Of Development In Type I And Type Ii Layer V Pyramidal Neurons Of The Mouse Medial Prefrontal And Primary Somatosensory Cortex, Ryan Shaun Pevey

Master's Theses

Two of the most challenging problems in neuroscience may be the characterization of different neuron types and determining the various decision points over the course of development that defines those different cell types. Part of the problem is that for the clear majority of neuron types, no single gene so far has been shown to act as a type marker. Instead it seems that signatures involving multiple genes are necessary to define each type. The identity of the genes in these signatures remains an important gap in our knowledge. However, recent developments in bioinformatics have produced population level transcript sequencing …