Digital Commons Network^™

Nontraditional And Traditional Student Motives To Use Their University Communication Center, Hannah Pritchard Rachal

Master's Theses

Research indicates that nontradifional students differ from traditional ones in many areas of higher education. Recognizing these differences in this growing population of students could impact retention rates for universities. Also, these differences could influence how communication centers deal with nontraditional students in recruiting them for appointments as well as during tutoring sessions. This study explores possible differences in motivations to use communication centers using both traditional and nontraditional students who had used their university's communication center. Students took a survey based on Ajzen's theory of planned behavior to discover if any differences exist and what the differences are. Findings …

"Where The Deepening Thunders Call": Voice In Herman Melville's Battle-Pieces And Aspects Of The War, Loren Percy Bishop

Master's Theses

Scholarship has long under-appreciated Herman Melville's 1866 collection of Civil War poetry, Battle-Pieces and Aspects of the War, partly due to the poems' inconsistent and distanced perspectives. Melville's experimental use of poetic voice and his unconventional depiction of fictional voices within the poems contribute to the collection's distanced perspectives, as well as to the volume's sometimes difficult and even awkward poetics. However, these experimental voices are also crucial to understanding Melville's attempt to describe changes in the relationship between American individuals and the nation occurring during and immediately following the tumultuous war. Melville's experiments in poetic voice also denote …

Mass Spectrometry Based Free Radical Induced Fragmentation Study Of Chemically Modified Cysteine Containing Peptides, Veronika Vitalyevna Dubniakova

Master's Theses

Modification of cysteine containing peptides by the thiol group of cysteine with radical precursors allows a simple and localized generation of radical species in the collision cell of mass spectrometer. The proof of principle and the analysis of the radical derived fragments of a set of different model peptides are described further in the manuscript as well as the importance and potential applications of the method.

Distant Neighbors: Negotiating Space And Urban Development In A Southern Mississippi Community, Kelly Jo Davila

Master's Theses

Through a case study in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, this research explores the need for cultural competence in urban economic development of neighborhoods. I place at the forefront the need for a collective community voice in the discussions and negotiations of future development, and argue that a lack of that voice has contributed to stunted economic growth.

In addition, through this case study I demonstrate that there may be systems in place intended to "solve" the problem of economic underdevelopment, but in reality only perpetuate the lack of economic growth. In this case, a reliance on the local bus system has made …

Exploring Parenting As A Predictor Of Criminogenic Thinking Among College Students, Rose Angeline Gonzalez

Master's Theses

Antisocial cognitions and attitudes, globally labeled as criminogenic thinking, are shown to perpetuate maladaptive and antisocial behavior in both criminals and non-offenders. In the non-offender population, these thinking patterns may not lead to illegal behavior, but can result in irresponsible or maladaptive behavioral consequences. Theories suggest that early childhood parent-child interactions may be partly responsible for the development of criminogenic thinking. While the relationship between parenting and antisocial behavior is well documented, the connection between parenting and the development of criminogenic thinking styles has not yet been explored. The current study examined the nature of the relationship between exposure to …

Rapid Approximation Of Bilinear Forms Involving Matrix Functions Through Asymptotic Analysis Of Gaussian Node Placement, Elisabeth Marie Palchak

Master's Theses

Technological advancements have allowed computing power to generate high resolution model s. As a result, greater stiffness has been introduced into systems of ordinary differential equations (ODEs) that arise from spatial discreti zation of partial differential equations (PDEs). The components of the solutions to these systems are coupled and changing at widely varying rates, which present problems for time-stepping methods. Krylov Subspace Spectral methods, developed by Dr. James Lambers, bridge the gap between explicit and implicit methods for stiff problems by computing each Fouier coefficient from an individualized approximation of the solution operator. KSS methods demonstrate a high order of …

Cross-Cultural Contact On Ship Island, Mississippi: An Analysis Of The French Warehouse Site Ceramic Assemblage From An Aboriginal And Engendered Perspective, Barbara Thedy Hester

Master's Theses

This thesis is a study of the Aboriginal ceramics recovered from the French Warehouse site (22HR638 or GUIS 98) located on Ship Island, a barrier island in the Mississippi Sound. The goals of the thesis are to determine both the regional source(s) of the pottery and date(s) of site occupation by identifying temper agents and ceramic types and varieties. It also seeks to determine the nature of site use by analysis of vessel form and function. Two scenarios are explored. If the ceramic vessels are of homogeneous forms, then they are likely products of trade alone. However, if they are …

A Comparison Of Two Boundary Methods For Biharmonic Boundary Value Problems, Jaeyoun Oh

Master's Theses

The purpose of this thesis is to solve biharmonic boundary value problems using two different boundary methods and compare their performances. The two boundary methods used are the method of fundamental solutions (MFS) and the method of approximate fundamental solutions (MAFS). The Delta-shaped basis function with the Abel regularization technique is used in the construction of the approximate fundamental solutions in MAFS. The MFS produces more accurate results but needs known fundamental solutions for the differential operator. The MAFS can provide comparable results, and is applicable to more general differential operators. The numerical results using both methods are presented.

Efficiency Of Using Commercial Dna Extraction Kits And The Organic Extraction Method In Removal Of Polymerase Chain Reaction Inhibitors, Brandi Jo Payne

Master's Theses

The first step in the determination of a perpetrator of a crime using DNA profiling is obtaining good quality DNA. The substrate on which the body fluid is located may contain substances that can co-extract with DNA and may inhibit subsequent PCR analysis. In this study, the efficiency of the removal of such contaminants were tested using three different methods, namely the PrepFiler DNA extraction kit, DNA IQ DNA extraction system, and the organic DNA extraction protocol. One, two, five, and ten μl of whole blood were deposited on soil, wood chips, and cotton swatches treated with bleach. DNA was …

Comparison Of The Observed Mixe Layer Depth In The Lee Of The Hawaiian Island To The Modeled Mixed Layer Depth Of The Regional Navy Coastal Ocean Model, Jeffery Todd Rayburn

Master's Theses

Accurately modeling the depth of the surface mixed layer in the lee of the Hawaiian Islands is important to naval operations because the area hosts numerous training exercises. Providing an accurate picture of the environment aids naval operators in making important tactical decisions. This study evaluates the ability of the Hawaii Regional Navy Coastal Ocean Model to accurately predict the depth of the surface mixed layer in this complex, wake island environment. The model was compared to CTD data collected from sea gliders and tests for correlation were conducted. For mixed layer depths that did show correlation, match paired t …

Assessing The Functional Accuracy And Quality Of Volunteered Geographic Information: A Comparison Of Open Street Map And Navteq Road Datasets, Brett William Hode

Master's Theses

This thesis provides a detailed analysis of the functional data accuracy between Open Street Map data and Navteq road data. The analysis revealed that the average accuracy level ranged from 87.3% to 94.9% for buffer distances between 2 and 20 meters. Analyses were also performed to determine the predictability and spatial distributions of accuracy levels. The results showed that there is no statistical relationship between population density, education levels, or poverty levels when compared to the accuracy levels of OSM data. Further, no clearly discernible patterns in the spatial distribution of accuracy values for OSM data were found. The overall …

Capecitabine Induced Hand And Foot Syndrome And The Reproducibility Of Friction Skin, Rodney Allen Schenk

Master's Theses

In 2008, a 62 year old male was detained by United States Customs and Immigration officials when attempting to enter the United States because his fingerprints were not detectable. It was later reported by his medical doctor in Singapore that the individual suffered from Hand and Foot Syndrome (palmar-plantar erythrodysaesthesia) as a result of his cancer treatment of capecitabine (N4-pentyloxycarbonyl-5-deoxy-5- fluorocytidine) which causes interruptions to the normal growth of keratinocytes in the friction skin. Capecitabine is a recently developed, orally administered fluoropyrimidine prodrug designed to generate 5-fluorouracil through a three-step enzymatic process giving it antineoplastic properties to combat cancerous tumor …

No One Really Knows You, Andrew Charles Rhodes

Master's Theses

This is a collection of five short stories that I have written during my time in the Center for Writers at the University of Southern Mississippi. The stories were written, revised, and workshopped in graduate classes over the last two years.

Ph-Responsive Polymers For Biosurfaces: An Investigation Of Solution Properties And Surface Modifying Performance, Yuhong Wei

Master's Theses

Gantrez® copolymers are used widely in the personal care industry, but their mechanisms of interaction with dental surfaces are poorly understood. In this study, we determined a number of the solution and polymer properties that control deposition, adsorption and adhesion in Gantrez® polymer aqueous solutions to model dental surfaces. QCM studies specifically showed that polymer adsorption to model hydroxyapatite surfaces occurred only in solutions with polymer concentration above c*. Adsorption and adhesion was greater in solutions of higher pH, where greater charge density along the polymer backbone was expected. For films prepared via spin-coating onto mica surfaces, addition of surfactants …

Primary And Secondary Flow Interactions In The Mixing Duct Of A 2-D Planer Air Augmented Rocket, Martin Roy Popish

Master's Theses

Experiments were conducted on the Cal Poly air augmented rocket (AAR) in order to characterize two-dimensional flowfield phenomenon occurring in the mixing duct. The testing utilized a direct connect system where high pressure nitrogen is fed into the combustion chamber, to form a primary flow. The high pressure nitrogen is then expanded through a nozzle, with an area ratio of 22 and an exit area of 0.75 in², up to Mach 4.3. Secondary air is entrained from a plenum chamber which is used to create a lower stagnation pressure for the secondary flow. The two flows mix in …

Predicting Quality Of Life Based On Humor Style, Zachary M. Kasow

Master's Theses

Humor is a multifaceted construct commonly used in daily life. For centuries philosophers, healers, and religious figures have extolled humor as the “best medicine” for both the body and the mind. Recent research has shown humor can be adaptive or maladaptive (i.e., contribute to or subtract from well-being; Martin, Puhlik-Doris, Larsen, Gray, & Weir, 2003). Empirical evidence supporting these claims for humor and physical health has been inconsistent; however, new evidence suggests there may indeed be a connection (Martin, 2001; Martin et al., 2003). At the same time, previous research has consistently supported the notion that using humor is related …

Investigation Of A Commercial Product (Biowish™) For Nitrogen Management, Eva Lee

Master's Theses

Abstract

Investigation of a Commercial Product (BiOWiSH­­^TM) for Nitrogen Management

Eva Lee

BiOWiSH–Aqua, which has the capability of treating nitrogen from wastewater through bioaugmentation, is a commercial product consisting of a blend of microorganisms developed by BiOWiSH Technologies. A study of the treatment of nitrogen compounds (i.e. , , and ) using Biowish–Aqua was conducted using small scale experiments (flask experiments) and large scale experiments (column reactor experiments). In this work, column reactors were created to test Biowish–Aqua’s nitrogen treating capabilities by providing enough depth to simulate the dissolved oxygen gradient that can be observed in a pond. …

Techniques To Characterize Vapor Cell Performance For A Nuclear-Magnetic-Resonance Gyroscope, James Julian Mirijanian

Master's Theses

Research was performed to improve the procedures for testing performance parameters of vapor cells for a nuclear-magnetic-resonance gyroscope. In addition to summarizing the theoretical infrastructure of the technology, this research resulted in the development and successful implementation of new techniques to characterize gyro cell performance.

One of the most important parameters to measure for gyro performance is the longitudinal spin lifetime of polarized xenon atoms in the vapor cell. The newly implemented technique for measuring these lifetimes matches results from the industry standard method to within 3.5% error while reducing the average testing time by 76% and increasing data resolution …

Dsm64: A Distributed Shared Memory System In User-Space, Stephen Alan Holsapple

Master's Theses

This paper presents DSM64: a lazy release consistent software distributed shared memory (SDSM) system built entirely in user-space. The DSM64 system is capable of executing threaded applications implemented with pthreads on a cluster of networked machines without any modifications to the target application. The DSM64 system features a centralized memory manager [1] built atop Hoard [2, 3]: a fast, scalable, and memory-efficient allocator for shared-memory multiprocessors.

In my presentation, I present a SDSM system written in C++ for Linux operating systems. I discuss a straight-forward approach to implement SDSM systems in a Linux environment using system-provided tools and concepts avail- …

American Pika (Ochotona Princeps): Persistence And Activity Patterns In A Changing Climate, Cody P. Massing

Master's Theses

An increasing amount of evidence suggests that as temperatures increase, montane animals are moving upward in elevation (IPCC 2007, Parmesan and Yohe 2003). As suitable habitats rise in elevation and then disappear altogether, these animals could be pushed to extinction. The American pika, Ochotona princeps, is a montane mammal that lives in western North America, usually at elevations above 1500 m (Smith and Weston 1990). Recent evidence suggests that pika population numbers are dropping in response to rising temperatures (Beever et al. 2010). The pika is a small herbivorous lagomorph, a relative of hares and rabbits. Its habitat is …

Autonomous Tracking And Following Of Sharks With An Autonomous Underwater Vehicle, Esfandiar Manii

Master's Theses

This thesis presents the integration of an acoustic tracking system within an autonomous underwater AUV (AUV) to enable real-time tracking of sharks tagged with artificial acoustic sources. The tracking system consists of two hydrophones and a receiver unit that outputs a measurement of the relative angle to the tagged shark. Since only two hydrophones are used, the sign of the relative angle measurement is unknown. To overcome this ambiguity, a particle filter algorithm was developed to estimate the position of the acoustic source. When combined with an active control system that drives vehicle to obtain different orientations with respect to …

Algae Lysis With Pulsed Electric Fields, Garrett Foltz

Master's Theses

With growing interest in alternative fuels, algae lipid harvesting is seen as a possible source of biofuel. Algae species under consideration include Chlorella vulgaris, Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and Dunaliella salina due to lipid contents as high as 30% to 56% of their dry weight (depending on growth conditions) and availability [5], [6]. In order to harvest lipids from algae, the cells must first be lysed.

Lysing is achieved by breaking the algal cell wall or membrane to separate oil from the rest of the algae biomass. Current lysing procedures use enzymes, pressure homogenization, and/or sonication to lyse cells; however, these methods …

An Inverse Design Method For Supersonic Airfoils, Steven Edward Skare

Master's Theses

Airfoil design is one of the most important aspects of aircraft design. Slight changes in airfoil geometry can lead to significant changes in a wide variety of aircraft performance metrics. Inverse design methods offer an efficient alternative to standard direct methods. The key to this design problem is to derive a direct relationship between changes in airfoil geometry and changes in pressure or velocity distributions. This relationship is then used to modify an initial airfoil and its pressure distribution to match a target pressure distribution, which is specified by design parameters. At this point, the engineer now has a final …

Efficiency Performance Improvement Using Parallel Dc-Dc Converters With A Digital Controller, Daniel Forbes

Master's Theses

A system to improve efficiency performance of a DC-DC converter is simulated and built. The proposed system combines multiple DC-DC converters in parallel and implements a digital control scheme and load-share controller. A model of the system is developed in MATLAB Simulink and the model demonstrates the improved converter’s efficiency particularly at low load conditions. This simulation is then designed into a hardware system running three DC-DC converters in parallel, controlled by a microcontroller and a load-share controller. The hardware also confirms the simulation results, although some hardware refinements are evident as simulation results are superior. The system is designed …

Best Management Practices Effectiveness To Reduce Sediment Transport To Morro Bay, Michael J. Randall

Master's Theses

The Morro Bay Watershed, which is located inSan Luis Obispo County,California, covers more than 48,000 acres of land and discharges intoMorroBaythrough the Morro Bay National Estuary (MBNE). The Chorro Creek Subwatershed consists of approximately 30,000 acres of the overall watershed. The MBNE provides an ecosystem that supports a variety of wildlife from the common sea gull to the endangered sea otter. The estuary is also home to over 200 species of birds. The operational waterfront of theMorroBayHarborwas and continues to be a strong supporter to the local economy of the City of Morro Bay. Numerous studies were conducted since the …

Mechanical Properties Of Bone Due To Sost Expression: A 3-Point Bending Assessment Of Murine Femurs, Kainoa John Peterson

Master's Theses

Sclerostin, a protein coded for by the SOST gene, is an osteocyte-expressed negative regulator of bone formation. The absence of SOST in the genome may have an effect on bone formation both during skeletal maturation and full maturity. This study attempts to determine significant differences in the mechanical properties of bone that expresses SOST compared to bone that does not. One hundred femur samples from 6, 8, and 12 month old mice were obtained from Lawrence Livermore National Labs and loaded until failure using three-point bending. Results showed significant differences in treatment group effects for cross sectional area, yield force, …

Multi-Circle Detections For An Automatic Medical Diagnosis System, Dingran Lu

Master's Theses

Real-time multi-circle detection has been a challenging problem in the field of biomedical image processing, due to the variable sizes and non-ideal shapes of cells in microscopic images. In this study, two new multi-circle detection algorithms are developed to facilitate an automatic bladder cancer diagnosis system: one is a modified circular Hough Transform algorithm integrated with edge gradient information; and the other one is a stochastic search approach based on real valued artificial immune systems. Computer simulation results show both algorithms outperform traditional methods such as the Hough Transform and the geometric feature based method, in terms of both precision …

William Colmer And The Politics Of The New Deal Labor Legislation 1933-1940, Zachary Wyatt Moulds

Master's Theses

William (Bill) Colmer first entered Congress in 1933, the same year that President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his New Deal began to reshape the role of government in the United States. While the New Deal's efforts to combat the Great Depression proved popular in the beginning, by 1935 many congressmen, especially southerners, began to distance themselves from the administration's attempts at social reform. Although many of his colleagues refused to endorse the increasingly liberal agenda of the New Deal, Congressman Colmer remained loyal throughout the decade. His loyalty to the administration was due in part to the south Mississippi district …

Approximation Of Elements Of Exponentials Of Differential Operators With Rational Quadrature, Daniel Elwood Lanterman

Master's Theses

We explore the possibility of improving the accuracy of approximations of elements of exponentials of differential operators, by using a rational function, instead of a polynomial function, as the interpolating function. Since a rational function behaves more like a decaying exponential function, it seems logical that the approximation should be more accurate. Through the use of high accuracy rational interpolants, we experiment with a numerical integration method to determine explicitly whether the error produced by a rational type approximation will indeed be less than that produced by a polynomial type approximation.

The Synthesis Of A Homologous Series Of Alkyl Lumazines And Their Application To The Dispersion Of Carbon Nanotubes, William P. Kopcha

Master's Theses

In this thesis, the synthesis of a series of alkyl lumazine surfactants (LC_n) is reported. Their application to the dispersion of both CoMoCAT and HiPco single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) is examined in detail and the thermal stability and chirality selection properties of dispersions made with these surfactants were compared both between themselves and with an alkyl flavin surfactant (FC₁₂). Lumazine alkyl chain length exhibited some control over the quality and the quantity of SWNTs dispersed. LC₁₀ was deemed most appropriate for comparison with FC₁₂ based on considerations of solubility and nanotube individualization. …