Digital Commons Network^™

Development Of Novel Backscatter Communication Systems Using A Multi-Hop Framework And Distributed Beamforming, Vikram Reddy Surendra

Masters Theses

"The goal of this thesis it to develop a wireless networking framework for battery-free devices based on passive, backscatter communication. In contrast to traditional, active communication systems, where the radio signal has to be generated using large amount of energy from batteries, the passive systems reflect the RF signal. The information is encoded by modulating the reflected signal, which consumes significantly less energy than active transmission. The existing passive, backscatter systems have limited communication capabilities. For example, the Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) systems support short-distance, direct communication between active reader and passive tags. The communication range is limited due to …

An Integrated Database Management System And Building Information Modeling For Sustainable Design, Sultan Althobaiti

Masters Theses

The use of Building Information Modeling (BIM) with sustainable design is getting widespread since it helped architects, engineers, and contractors in achieving the sustainability goal. The present work is using green and certified products and materials to be integrated with Building Information Model (BIM) to simulate and generate a conceptual design for green and sustainable design. The use of Building Information Modeling (BIM) would help achieving sustainability, which would be predictable and possible. Revit Architecture is a tool of BIM technology that can be used for building designing and modeling.

The research represents a database system for green building products …

Integrating A Variety Of Cultures And Diversity Into The Upper Elementary Curriculum, Tammy Joy Hamlin

Masters Theses

Research has overwhelmingly shown that something needs to be done to combat the increasing problem of high minority drop-out rates. Many people still do not acknowledge that schools need to do anything differently. Instead the problem is blamed on the home life and economics. Some teachers feel that low-income inner city, minority students, simply are not capable of being successful academically. Society often does not realize how poor the minority drop out rates are in their school districts. Some administrations have chosen to hide the statistics. For instance one New York school district in this research promoted that almost all …

Christian Yoga As A Product Of Hinduism And The New Age Movement, Injib Kim

Masters Theses

This thesis is divided into four main parts. Part one examines the origin of Hindu yoga practice. It will focus on the ancient Hindu origins of modern Yoga practice. Part two deals with the introduction of yoga into the western world. It examines the socio-cultural-religious phenomenon that Yoga has become. Chapter three inspects yoga in American churches. It concerns the origins, meaning, and detailed methods of Christian Yoga. The last part formulates a biblical response to Christian yoga. It is an apologetic for biblical Christianity.

The Use Of Music In Early Childhood Centers In British Columbia: A Survey Of The Perceptions And Practices Of Early Childhood Educators, Michelle Lawrence

Masters Theses

This study explored the current practices of early childhood educators' utilization and perception about music in their classrooms. Early childhood educators are defined as individuals who have completed post-secondary training at an accredited college or university in early childhood education and are registered with the ECEBC Registry. Early childhood centers are defined as either preschools or licensed group child care centers. An online survey was been designed to obtain information regarding demographics and characteristics of early childhood centers in British Columbia, relevant musical and educational training, comfort level of the early childhood educator leading group music activities, implementation of the …

A Study Of The Effect Of Splinting On Pain During Tip Pinch For Osteoarthritis Of The First Carpometacarpal Joint, Leana Tank

Masters Theses

The following research project focused on the effect of a prefabricated neoprene first carpometacarpal splint on osteoarthritis pain with tip-pinch, strength measurements of tip-pinch and functional performance. The following questions were explored throughout this study:

1. There will be a significant decrease in mean pain levels when the subject’s hand is splinted as compared to mean pain levels when the hand is not splinted.

2. There will be a significant decrease in mean pain levels for the second session as compared to the first.

3. There will be a significant increase in mean tip pinch strength measurements when the subject’s …

Virginia’S Steward: A Re-Examination Of The Life And Work Of Thornton Stringfellow 1788-1869, Justin Stowe

Masters Theses

Historians have done a tremendous job at their inquiries into biblical proslavery ideology, even though their focus is primarily on the apologists’ arguments in regard to slavery. These historians gave the scholarly world a clear understanding of how and why men defended slavery, but they only focus on their proslavery thought, which creates an incomplete picture of the apologist.

This work focuses on a minister named Thornton Stringfellow who lived in Culpeper, Virginia during the nineteenth century, in the tumultuous time leading up to the American Civil War. By examining Stringfellow’s personal background, the historical events that took place during …

Viewing The World Through Oprah's Eyes: A Framing Analysis Of The Spiritual Views Of Oprah Winfrey, Marianne Jeanette Crosby

Masters Theses

Oprah Winfrey is an American icon. She has a hand in almost every form of media: movies, television, books, Internet, and radio. In her rise to success, another place that she has infiltrated is the church. Because of her wide range of influence, her thoughts and teaching on spirituality have made their way into both the home and church. Over ten years ago, talk shows had a reputation for portraying mainly negative topics. To combat this stereotype, she made a push to encourage more positive topics of discussion on her show. Yet after receiving criticism for "preaching," she withdrew from …

Hauntings In The Church: Counterfeit Christianity Through The Fin De Siècle Gothic Novel, Melissa Ann West

Masters Theses

The lengthy Victorian period, extending from 1832 until 1901, was a time of cultural turmoil. New scientific discoveries were being made daily, and Christianity was forced to deal with issues of Darwinism, occultism, and growing disbelief in God. By the start of the fin de siècle, God was an impartial deity sitting on His almighty throne, and man was nothing more than a highly evolved animal. The church, both Catholic and Anglican, did not exist to lead man toward salvation, but existed because of a dated adherence to cultural tradition.

No one genre captured the religious upheavals of the age …

A Community Ecology And Stable Isotope Study Of Plankton, Macroinvertebrate, And Fish Communities Surrounding Groundwater Vents In Lake Huron, Michigan, Thomas Garrison Sanders Jr.

Masters Theses

Extreme environments can create ecotones with uncharacteristic physicochemical conditions and ecological communities. Recently, several submerged sinkholes were discovered in Lake Huron where hypoxic groundwater that is rich with dissolved ions intrudes into surrounding lake water. Researchers have documented large growths of cyanobacteria and chemosynthetic bacteria surrounding these groundwater vents, but little is known if this production is utilized by upper trophic level organisms and how the environmental conditions affect local community density and diversity. My objectives were threefold: (1) I wanted to confirm the presence and describe the nature and extent of chemical and physical gradients in the sublacustrine sinkhole …

Hesitation: An Analysis Of Candide, Jared T. Mink

Masters Theses

Candide calls into question its merit as literature or philosophy because it draws its reader into eisegesis. The act of interpreting Candide is never a cool judgment. The enigmatic ending forces the reader to see that acts of judgment are appetitive: Desires shape judgment; judgment plies desire. Candide's behavior reveals eighteenth century interest in "the body," which was the scientist's chief tool in entering "the void" to explore the integrity of new knowledge. We see this body interest in Locke's Essay and, through a concept of "hesitation," we can see that Voltaire absorbed Lock's view of the interconnection between judgment …

From In-Vitro To In-Vivo: Corporate Development And Efficacy Of A Topical Hair Growth Agent Derived From Natural Extracts, Kelly Michael Glynn

Masters Theses

Androgenetic alopecia (male pattern baldness) affects up to 50% of the world’s population, propelling the development for a possible treatment. The hair follicle is influenced by several genetic and physiologic factors, which, when gone awry, lead to androgenetic alopecia. Vascular endothelial and keratinocyte growth factors are believed to be promoters of hair growth, as is inhibition of the proteasome complex. The cytokine IL-1α is also known to regulate follicle dynamics. The research objective described herein was an attempt to develop a botanical blend, which could mediate the above biomarkers, be successfully incorporated into a safe topical product and be evaluated …

"Life Wants Padding": Food, Eating, And Bodies In George Eliot's Novels, Tess Rebecca Stockslager

Masters Theses

This thesis uses six of the novels of George Eliot (those that take place entirely in rural England), works from the field of psychology, the concepts of realism and sympathy, and a metaphor of liquidity from Thomas Carlyle to explore several ways that body fat shapes identity and mediates relationships with others. Boundaries are the guiding concept: the chapters move from a demonstration of how boundaries between the self and others are created (padding), through a discussion of how sympathy can enable those boundaries to be broken (stuffing), to two case studies of characters whose boundaries of selfhood are in …

The Legacy Of A Failing Father: Dysfunctional Father Figures In William Faulkner's Fiction, Travis V. Holt

Masters Theses

The appearance of dysfunctional father figures in numerous works of William Faulkner makes his struggle to relinquish his animosity for his father, Murry Falkner, a significant theme in his fiction. The dysfunctional father figures play the pivotal role in the social, financial, and psychological decline of their families as the children struggle to escape their father's influence and their dismal fate. The real-life events and situations of Faulkner and his family members serve as a source for Faulkner's fiction, and the constant disgust several of his characters have for their father figures resembles Faulkner's own feelings towards his father. By …

"Dragging Themselves Through The Negro Streets At Dawn": The Influence Of African American Culture On The Beats, Christopher Robinson

Masters Theses

Following its victory in the Second World War, America paradoxically faced a period of prosperity and peace coupled with many underlying insecurities and tensions. There was a great deal of anxiety caused by the advent of the atom bomb, the great destruction of Europe during the war, and the growing fear of Soviet aggression. Just as there had been an effort to unite Americans against the earlier threats of German and Japanese hostility, Americans attempted to create a united front in the United States to combat the growing fear of Communism throughout the world. Members of the American middle class …

Sediment Remediation Impacts On Macroinvertebrate Community Structure: Assessing The Success Of Urban Stream Restoration, Laurie Beth Nederveld

Masters Theses

Land use practices altering the natural landscape have resulted in the widespread degradation of stream ecosystems and the need for urban stream restorations. While a number of studies have evaluated the success of these stream restoration efforts, few have assessed the recovery of macroinvertebrate communities following the remediation of contaminated sediments. The purpose of my study was to evaluate the impact of sediment remediation activities on macroinvertebate abundance, diversity, and richness to determine the success of stream restoration in Ruddiman Creek, a small stream in the Muskegon Lake watershed. During my investigation, macroinvertebrate samples were collected from all available habitat …

The Effects Of Salvinorin A On The Novel Object Recognition Task In Male Rats, Larissa A. Haliw

Masters Theses

A recent increase in the recreational use of the plant Salvia divinorum and its derivative salvinorin A, an atypical naturally occurring kappa opioid receptor ag onist with hallucinogenic properties, by teens and young adults has contributed to a growing concern regarding the psychological effects of this drug. Salvia divinorum is presently a legal alternative to illegal hallucinogens and it is widely available over the Internet and in stores for a nominal cost making it a potential candidate as a drug of abuse. To date, no investigations have ex plored the effects of salvinorin A in memory assays. The novel object …

A Visual Rhetorical Analysis Of Selected Nexium Prescription Drug Advertisements According To The Methodology Of Sonja Foss, Jonathan Henry Ryan Law

Masters Theses

Direct‐to‐consumer advertising has gathered much negative attention. It’s purpose is filled with questions of ethics and legitimacy. This analytical study takes a deeper look into the advertisements that promote prescription drugs. The advertisements can be seen at the flip of a magazine, click of a button, or a walk down the road. The methodology for analyzing visual images according to Sonja Foss provided a framework to provide results. This preliminary study found evident problems in the drug advertising industry. Further research was beckoned due to the findings of this exploratory project.

Creating The Tradition Of Honoring The Older Population, Catherine Weisbeck

Masters Theses

This qualitative research study explored what it would take to create the tradition of honoring the older population in American culture. In this exploratory study, 15 participants were interviewed in person using a series of ten open ended questions. The participants were selected according to the criteria of being an older adult, working with or volunteering for older adults, or having been involved in a project which considered the older population as a subgroup within the total population. The participants were personally invited by the researcher to be interviewed and the interview took approximately 40 minutes. Results indicated that creating …

Influence Of Music Tempo On Calorie Consumption In A Restaurant Setting, Rachel Rogers

Masters Theses

This study examined the difference of calories consumed by restaurant patrons while listening to fast and slow tempo music. Twenty-three participants ate 2 meals spaced 5 days apart, 1 meal was eaten while listening to slow tempo music and 1 meal was eaten while listening to fast tempo music. Foods were weighed before being served to participants and after participants were finished eating to determine calories consumed. On average, participants consumed more calories while listening to slow tempo music versus fast tempo music. Although the mean difference between the conditions was not significant, the data trends were congruent with the …

Post Adoption Contact With Birth Parents In Foster Care Adoptions, Michelle Eileen Roberts

Masters Theses

In private adoptions in the United States, a general trend towards more openness and contact post-adoption has been documented in the research over the last 20 years. In contrast, there has been very little research on openness in foster care adoptions. This study sought to begin to fill this void in the research by examining the level of openness in foster care adoptions and exploring how agencies facilitate and support openness in adoptions. A 20-question survey was administered to adoptive parents over the internet, covering the level of openness in their adoption, their satisfaction with the level of contact and …

The Application Of Visual Phonics And Phonological Awareness Interventions To Address Language Impairment In Preschool Children, Jodi Dyke

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of two phonological awareness interventions on the development of auditory comprehension, expressive language, semantics, and syntax. Specifically, the study examined the effect of phonological awareness intervention integrated with See the Sound/Visual Phonics hand cues versus only phonological awareness intervention. Twenty-seven children identified as speech and/or language delayed were assigned to one of three groups that received (a) phonological awareness instruction, (b) phonological awareness instruction coupled with visual phonics hand cues, or (c) no intervention. Seven children were designated as a control group and twenty were placed in one of two …

Formative Evaluation Of The Career Consultant On Call Program, Bernadette Grace So-Goodlin

Masters Theses

The Career Consultant on Call (CCOC) program was developed to address a gap in service at The Career Center (TCC) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Graduate assistants employed at TCC have been trained to serve in the CCOC role, but to date the effectiveness of training has not been examined. Effectiveness of CCOC training was analyzed in a mixed methods study through self-evaluations, videotaped CCOC/student client interactions, and satisfaction surveys of student clients to determine CCOC self-efficacy in microcounseling skills and quality of these microskills. While results demonstrated that CCOC self-efficacy increased over the course of a semester, …

Alcohol Consumption And Negative Outcomes At Eastern Illinois University, Matthew Michael Feely

Masters Theses

The primary focus of this study was to examine Eastern Illinois University student alcohol consumption and associated negative outcomes. Negative outcomes defined for the purposes of the present study were poor academic perfonnance, getting into a physical fight, driving under the influence, and sexual assault. Data collected by Eastern Illinois University's Health Education Resource Center using the CORE survey was analyzed for the study. A review ofliterature indicated that student alcohol consumption often resulted in negative outcomes. The literature suggested that Caucasians consumed the most alcohol among all groups by ethnicity/ race. The location of consumption played a major role …

Eliminating Hazing By Addressing Masculinities In A Fraternity Setting, Kevin J. Kolman

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

A Survey Of Disability Support Services In Illinois Higher Education, Courtney Diann Quinn

Masters Theses

This study explored the services and accommodations available to students with disabilities at several institutions of higher education in the state of Illinois. Focus was on the number of students with disabilities matriculating, the types of disabilities the students had, and the services colleges and universities were providing to support success among students with disabilities. A survey was distributed to disability services administrators at eighty colleges and universities in Illinois to obtain data regarding college and university demographics, and the programs and resources offered by the colleges and universities. Additional phone interviews were conducted to receive further information to supplement …

Students Attitudes And Beliefs Towards Recycling On The Campus Of A Midwestern Masters Granting Institution, Mark D. Bates

Masters Theses

In choosing this topic, research was conducted to determine what students know about recycling, how they participate in recycling on campus and see how the recycling programs on the campus of Eastern Illinois University (EIU) has been beneficial to the institution, and to the campus community as it attests to helping develop students as global citizenship. Recycling on the Eastern Illinois University's campus generally takes place in two distinct areas: residence halls and academic buildings. Each of these areas presents a unique challenge for the recycling coordinator, in terms of materials readily available, the collection method, and the level of …

Returns To Education In Rural America, Dilyara Jepbarova

Masters Theses

Rural areas are less developed than urban. It is well known that rural workers are more likely to suffer from the lower wages than their counterparts from metro areas. Policymakers wrestle with the issue of "brain drain" in rural areas and, therefore, a loss of tax income in rural counties. "Brain drain" happens when professionals leave rural counties for metropolitans to earn higher returns to education. This thesis will shed light on some sides of rural development connected with the returns to education.

The main goal of this research is to estimate and compare wages and returns to education in …

"Freedom In Working": Representations Of Working Women In Elizabeth Gaskell's Mary Barton, Ruth, And North And South, Amy King

Masters Theses

In my M.A. thesis, I explore Elizabeth Gaskell's representations of women workers in her three novels, Mary Barton, Ruth, and North and South through the context of Victorian domestic ideology and social class. I argue that Elizabeth Gaskell supported and challenged the accepted gender roles for women. Through a close reading of her novels and short stories, I analyzed the reasons behind her conflicting and ambiguous portrayals of working women. I argue that while Gaskell clearly advocated domestic work as the "natural" work for women, her views on wage-earning labor varied; however she suggests that women, regardless of class, could …

Feathers As Bioindicators Of Pcb Exposure In Clapper Rails, Jay W. Summers

Masters Theses

In this study we used feathers as a biomonitor for exposure to the polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) Aroclor 1268. Clapper rails have been used as an indicator species of environmental damage for the LCP superfund site located in Brunswick, GA USA. LCP is contaminated with Aroclor 1268, which has been used in limited amounts elsewhere and therefore can be used as a contaminant marker. Aroclor 1268, including congener profiles, were quantified using gas chromatography (GC). Concurrently each sample was quantified for total Aroclor 1268 using an enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay (ELISA) and compared to the GC results to determine if ELISA was …