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An Examination Of Familial Alcoholism And Attitudes Toward Alcohol Interventions Among College Students, Christy Capone Jan 2007

An Examination Of Familial Alcoholism And Attitudes Toward Alcohol Interventions Among College Students, Christy Capone

Open Access Dissertations

This study examined the prevalence of family history of alcoholism (FHA) and its effects on alcohol use and problems in a sample (N = 408) of college students. In addition, students' goals regarding their drinking and attitudes toward various intervention approaches, including pharmacotherapy, were investigated. Using a multilevel FHA measure, an overall prevalence rate of 65.9% and a rate of 29.1% for FHA in both first and second-degree relatives were observed. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to investigate relations between gender, FHA and alcohol use and problems. Results indicated a significant positive association between FHA and alcohol-related problems and …


Population Dynamics Of The Shortfin Mako, Isurus Oxyrinchus, In The Northwest Atlantic: An Examination Of Food Habits, Movement And Habitat, Survival, And Population Size, Anthony Darrell Wood Jan 2007

Population Dynamics Of The Shortfin Mako, Isurus Oxyrinchus, In The Northwest Atlantic: An Examination Of Food Habits, Movement And Habitat, Survival, And Population Size, Anthony Darrell Wood

Open Access Dissertations

Until recently, fish and invertebrate species with high economic value were the main focus for stock assessment and fishery management plans. Though less economically important, elasmobranchs are being increasingly targeted by both commercial and recreational fisheries. In order to better understand the current status of the shortfin mako population in the northwest Atlantic, this thesis examined four aspects of shortfin mako population dynamics resulting in five manuscripts (chapters). The first chapter generated regression equations that allowed for back-calculation of bluefish (an important prey species) sizes from digested remains. The second chapter revisited the food habits and daily ration of shortfin …


Stage Profiles And Predictors Of Exercise In A Multiple Risk Sample, Gabriela Dye Jan 2007

Stage Profiles And Predictors Of Exercise In A Multiple Risk Sample, Gabriela Dye

Open Access Dissertations

Cluster and Latent class analyses were used to examine within Stage profiles of individuals at-risk for three behaviors based on their perceived Pros, Cons, and Self-efficacy. In addition, Structural equation and Latent variable modeling were used to examine the predictors of 12 months exercise participation. The results of Cluster and Latent class analyses did not replicate the results of previous studies, which delineated at least four distinct profiles within the Stages. Only two to three profiles emerged within each Stage as well as within the full dataset. Most two-cluster/class, and three-cluster/class solutions consisted of at least one cluster with extremely …


Study Of Nucleophilicity Of An Enol Tosylate Fragment Of α-Formylglycine (α-Fgly-Ots), Sitaram Bhavaraju Jan 2007

Study Of Nucleophilicity Of An Enol Tosylate Fragment Of α-Formylglycine (α-Fgly-Ots), Sitaram Bhavaraju

Open Access Dissertations

In this dissertation the synthesis and reactions of an enol tosylate fragment of α-Formylglycine is presented. The α-Formylglycine (α-FGly) amino acid fragment is present at the active center of enzyme sulphatases in both eukaryotes and prokaryotes. In humans this class of enzymes regulates the degradation of sulfate esters that are accumulated at various substrate sites. Impaired desulfation at these sites leads to several associated disorders. It has been proposed that α-FGly plays an important role in this mode of desulfation. Endiamines are a modified form of the α-FGly fragment. Endiamines are proposed to introduce conformational rigidity to the molecular structure …


Stability, Structure, And Effects Of Perinatal Morbidity On Temperament From Infancy To Adolescence, Robin June Miller Jan 2007

Stability, Structure, And Effects Of Perinatal Morbidity On Temperament From Infancy To Adolescence, Robin June Miller

Open Access Dissertations

There is a considerable amount of theoretical and empirical research on child temperament; yet there is little consensus on the theoretical perspective, definition, or measurement. In addition, the empirical research has been limited by a small age span and a focus on one temperament dimension. The theoretical framework of this study was the transactional model which views the development of a child as a product of the complex interplay between the continuous, dynamic influences of the child's biological heritage and his/her life experience provided by family and social contexts. This longitudinal, descriptive, correlational research study examined the stability, structure, and …


Three Essays On Conservation-Oriented Community Land Use Management, Yong Jiang Jan 2007

Three Essays On Conservation-Oriented Community Land Use Management, Yong Jiang

Open Access Dissertations

Urban sprawl is a pervasive phenomenon. Public concern on its potential to degrade the quality of life motivates conservation-oriented land use management as one of the policy priorities for local authorities. My dissertation research contributes to this policy issue by developing a model for nature reserve design, demonstrating the policy application of conservation models to ecosystem-integrated land use management, and by exploring the potential of tax increment financing for open space preservation. The first study develops an ecological function-based design method for cost-efficient selection of critical land to be preserved, and expects the established system of nature reserves to maintain …


Decision Making In Spectroscopy, Kevin D. Judge Jan 2007

Decision Making In Spectroscopy, Kevin D. Judge

Open Access Dissertations

Vibrational spectroscopy provides a great deal of information regarding the chemical properties of a substance; however spectral features associated with different chemical substances are not always obvious. Through the aid of advanced computer algorithms, pattern recognition techniques and chemometric models, complex and subtle relationships between a material and its spectrum can be identified and utilized to draw useful conclusions. The ability of computers to make inferences from spectral information was demonstrated in several applications. Spectral imaging provides a substantial amount of data, with each pixel of an image representing a spectrum. For images of chemical mixtures, spectra of pure components …


Juvenile Abundance In A Summer Nursery And Ontogenetic Changes In The Distribution And Migrations Of Sandbar Sharks, Camilla Thomas Mccandless Jan 2007

Juvenile Abundance In A Summer Nursery And Ontogenetic Changes In The Distribution And Migrations Of Sandbar Sharks, Camilla Thomas Mccandless

Open Access Dissertations

Delaware Bay is one of two principal nursery grounds for the sandbar shark, Carcharhinus plumbeus, in United States coastal waters. Tagging studies were conducted for juvenile sandbar sharks in Delaware Bay during their summer nursery seasons from 1995 to 2000 using gillnet (1995-2000) and longline (1997-2000) gears. These studies were designed to aid fishery managers in defining essential fish habitat for juvenile sandbar sharks tagged in Delaware Bay by determining spatial and temporal distributions, overwintering nursery areas, and if natal homing occurs in sandbar sharks born in Delaware Bay. In 2001, the distribution data from these tagging studies were used …


Enhancing Hardiness In Urban Adolescent Males: A Hardiness Curriculum, Lea Beth Lockwood Jan 2007

Enhancing Hardiness In Urban Adolescent Males: A Hardiness Curriculum, Lea Beth Lockwood

Open Access Dissertations

This exploratory study examined the impact of a school-based psycho-educational group intervention for 9th grade urban adolescent males. The group intervention was created to enhance measured levels of hardiness attitudes, self-esteem, and perceived social support in a sample (N = 51) of high-risk adolescent males attending an alternative high school in Providence, RI. Approximately half of the sample (n = 22) attended the eight-week intervention. Participants were given the Personal Views Survey – Third Edition, the Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale, and the Child and Adolescent Social Support Scale as both pre- and posttests. Although no impact on …


Examining The Effectiveness Of A School-Based Mental Health Center's Services, Sally A. Mitchell Jan 2007

Examining The Effectiveness Of A School-Based Mental Health Center's Services, Sally A. Mitchell

Open Access Dissertations

Untreated mental health problems among our youth result in outcomes, including suicide, homicide, substance abuse, low grades, poor attendance, and dropping out of school (Pfeiffer & Reddy, 1998; Pumariega & Vance, 1999). SBMHC's, a Systems of Care framework, can address the limited accessibility and availability to proper mental health care for children (U.S. DHHS, 1999; Gruttadaro, 2002; Flaherty & Weist, 1999). The ecological model acknowledges the interactions between the person and systems. It is sensitive to how multiple influences (environmental, biological, psychological, social) may impact youth. Despite their increase, the research on the effectiveness of SBMHC's is limited. This study …


Community-Based And Collaborative Management Of Coral Reefs And Coastal Resources In Palau, Elizabeth Matthews Jan 2007

Community-Based And Collaborative Management Of Coral Reefs And Coastal Resources In Palau, Elizabeth Matthews

Open Access Dissertations

This study examines community-based and collaborative management of coral reefs in Palau through three manuscripts, each examining particular coastal resource management activities at a different scale of partnership and interaction: local protected area management at the state level, ecosystem management at the inter-state level, and migratory species (marine turtles) management at the state/national government level. In each instance, the social context of resource management was described using factors drawn from Richard Pollnac's Rapid Assessment of Management Parameters (RAMP) for coral reefs, among others. Ethnographic methods, especially key informant interviews and targeted questionnaires, were used in this study. A comparative analysis …


The Impact Of Climate Change On Benthic-Pelagic Coupling And The Biogeochemical Cycling Of Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island, Robinson Walter Fulweiler Jan 2007

The Impact Of Climate Change On Benthic-Pelagic Coupling And The Biogeochemical Cycling Of Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island, Robinson Walter Fulweiler

Open Access Dissertations

Climate change has altered the phenology or seasonal sequencing of events in many ecosystems, including Narragansett Bay, RI (USA). The timing and magnitude of the winter-spring bloom has changed dramatically over the last three decades resulting in a 60% decline in water column chlorophyll a concentrations in mid-Narragansett Bay. This large decline is linked to a long-term warming trend. We hypothesized that the decline in chlorophyll led to a decrease in the quantity and/or quality of organic matter deposition to the benthos and fundamental changes in sediment biogeochemical cycling and benthic-pelagic coupling. We observed significant decreases in sediment respiration and …


Polymorph Characterization And Control, Michael J. Donahue Jan 2007

Polymorph Characterization And Control, Michael J. Donahue

Open Access Dissertations

Sustainability in the pharmaceutical industry will require the ability to monitor, and ultimately control production processes in real time. One area of particular concern is that of polymorphism, where there is a change of crystalline state for a compound, resulting in varied physiological properties. For this work we have looked at three such processes. First, an investigation of the ability to monitor polymorphic transitions in a pharmaceutical product, glycine, has been developed though optical spectroscopy. Second, the ability to induce nucleation of a particular polymorph via a novel method of acoustic levitation has been explored. Lastly, a method of characterization …


Personal Energy Management Styles And Their Influence On Work Performance, Catherine L. Pastille Jan 2007

Personal Energy Management Styles And Their Influence On Work Performance, Catherine L. Pastille

Open Access Dissertations

Expectations for work performance have extended beyond the traditional confines of the work place and beyond a forty-hour work week as communication technologies have made work possible any time and anywhere. At the same time as expectations for work performance are increasing, the energy workers need to perform their work is remaining relatively fixed in the short-term. This study explored the question of how workers manage their personal energy. It was proposed that employees stay energized for their work by developing energy management styles (EMS) which are relatively stable patterns of behavior through which they manage their personal energy relative …


Text, Context, And Reception History Of The Richard Dehmel Poems "Venus Mater" And "Wiegenlied" And Their Lieder Settings By Hans Pfitzner And Richard Strauss, Marie Ann Tavianini Jun 2006

Text, Context, And Reception History Of The Richard Dehmel Poems "Venus Mater" And "Wiegenlied" And Their Lieder Settings By Hans Pfitzner And Richard Strauss, Marie Ann Tavianini

Open Access Dissertations

This study examines the social and cultural circumstances surrounding the publication of the poems "Venus Mater" and "Wiegenlied" by the late nineteenth-century German poet Richard Dehmel, and the composition of the corresponding lieder by Hans Pfitzner and Richard Strauss. An accurate history of the publication and reception of Richard Dehmel's poetry has been difficult due to the existence of multiple similar versions of his poems. By referring back to the primary sources of his poetry, it is shown that "Venus Mater" and "Wiegenlied," although very similar, were discrete works published at different times in different anthologies of Dehmel's poems. Further …


Vocal Health Of Middle School And High School Choral Directors, Sandra M. Schwartz Jun 2006

Vocal Health Of Middle School And High School Choral Directors, Sandra M. Schwartz

Open Access Dissertations

Teachers are considered professional voice users because they depend on the regular and uninterrupted use of the voice. The nature of teaching requires more extensive use of the voice than other professions. Therefore, teachers are faced with a greater risk of developing voice problems. In addition to using the voice to present content to students, teachers must also manage the classroom and student behavior. All of these activities have potential to compromise vocal integrity. The purpose of this study was to examine the vocal health of selected middle school and high school choral directors. Specifically, it explored relationships between vocal …


Structural And Functional Studies Of The Csk And *Src Family Protein Tyrosine Kinases, Marina Ayrapetov Jan 2006

Structural And Functional Studies Of The Csk And *Src Family Protein Tyrosine Kinases, Marina Ayrapetov

Open Access Dissertations

Signaling networks are vital to the proper functioning and survival of the cell and the organism. Src family protein tyrosine kinases (SFKs) are involved in a variety of signal transduction events. Activation and over-expression of SFKs lead to development of a variety of human carcinomas. Regulatory mechanisms of Src family members in the cell are not fully understood. One of the known negative regulatory mechanisms for Src is phosphorylation of the C-terminal tyrosine residue by of the Csk family kinases. The Csk family has two members: Csk and Csk homologous kinase (Chk). The presence of two homologous PTKs raises important …


Assessment Of The Impacts Of Tourism Development In Coastal Communities In Belize, Amy Diedrich Jan 2006

Assessment Of The Impacts Of Tourism Development In Coastal Communities In Belize, Amy Diedrich

Open Access Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to assess the environmental, socio-cultural, and economic impacts of tourism in coastal communities in Belize. In particular, the objective is to improve our understanding of how to promote tourism that provides maximum benefits to local people and the marine environment, while having minimal negative impacts upon them. A multi-method ethnographic approach was used to gather extensive qualitative and quantitative data from six coastal communities in Belize during the period of March--November 2005. The majority of the data were collected using survey instruments for local people and tourists. These data were analyzed statistically and substantiated …


The Color Of Sympathy: Biology, Race, And Feeling In Republican And Antebellum Culture, Edward M. Williams Jr. Jan 2006

The Color Of Sympathy: Biology, Race, And Feeling In Republican And Antebellum Culture, Edward M. Williams Jr.

Open Access Dissertations

This dissertation explores the relation between sentimentality, racial essentialism, and abolition. In the introduction, I explore how contemporary theories of sentimentalism and liberalism have served to prevent contemporary literary scholars from 'seeing' the particular ways in which the assumption of 'Negro racial difference' anchored the sentimental condemnation of 'Negro slavery.' In chapter one, I argue that Thomas Jefferson considered the institution of 'Negro slavery' as an affront to the 'moral sentiments' not because it refused to acknowledge the essential equality of 'Negro slaves,' but because it refused to acknowledge that 'Negro slaves' are 'biologically inferior human beings' endowed with certain …


Consideration For The Impact Of Climate Change Information On Stated Preferences, Boaz Barak Jan 2006

Consideration For The Impact Of Climate Change Information On Stated Preferences, Boaz Barak

Open Access Dissertations

This study identifies the effects of different types of climate change information on people's stated willingness to support public programs to reduce the impacts of climate change. The models developed in this research provide the Waquoit Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve with tools for evaluating outreach programs. By approaching the issue of information effects with environmental economic research methods, this study provides a multidisciplinary approach for designing informative programs that better achieve the goal of informed decision making by the local communities. Focus group findings guided the design of information treatments that address people's mental models for climate change. Two …


Testing For Explosives: Forensics And Hazards, Suvarna Kishore Marimganti Jan 2006

Testing For Explosives: Forensics And Hazards, Suvarna Kishore Marimganti

Open Access Dissertations

Hair has been used extensively for detection of drugs. Hair analysis has also been shown to be quicker and less invasive than other methods used for analysis of environmental pollutants in biological systems. This study examined the ability of hair to pick up explosives [2, 4, 6-trinitro toluene (TNT), hexahydro-1, 3, 3-trinitro-s-triazine (RDX), pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN), ethylene glycol dinitrate (EGDN), 2, 4-dinitrotoluene (2, 4-DNT), nitroglycerine (NG), triacetone triperoxide (TATP) and diacetone diperoxide (DADP)] via vapor diffusion. The results showed that the sorption of explosive to black hair is significantly higher than brown, blond and bleached hair. The hair did not …


Exploring The Experiences Of Gay, Lesbian, And Bisexual Adolescents In School: Lessons For School Psychologists, Marjorie Cooper-Nicols Jan 2006

Exploring The Experiences Of Gay, Lesbian, And Bisexual Adolescents In School: Lessons For School Psychologists, Marjorie Cooper-Nicols

Open Access Dissertations

This study utilized modified grounded theory methodology with gay, lesbian, and bisexual (GLB) adolescents to explore three research questions: (1) How have schools responded to GLB youth? (2) What are some of the factors that help or hinder development of a healthy sexual identity for GLB adolescents? and (3) How does being involved in a community GLB youth organization impact GLB youth? Prior research has demonstrated that schools are often hostile environments for GLB youth. With little recognition and support, GLB adolescents are a group at risk for depression, suicide, substance abuse, violence, and school failure. Participants in this study …


An Information Criterion For Use In Predictive Data Mining, Eric Kyper Jan 2006

An Information Criterion For Use In Predictive Data Mining, Eric Kyper

Open Access Dissertations

This dissertation contains three manuscripts related to each other. The first manuscript is a review of existing data mining literature in the areas of: machine learning, rule induction, neural networks, case based reasoning, genetic algorithms, and rough sets. For each area a brief description of what the topic is, examples of applications in the area, current research, and directions for future research are provided. The second manuscript presents an information criterion for choosing between decision trees exhibiting different characteristics of accuracy and complexity. The information criterion allows decision-makers to choose between decision tree model subsets based on their preference for …


Sexual Identity Construction Among Lesbian, Bisexual And Unlabeled Women, Kelly Brooks Jan 2006

Sexual Identity Construction Among Lesbian, Bisexual And Unlabeled Women, Kelly Brooks

Open Access Dissertations

Current research and theory regarding women's experience of sexuality depict more flexibility and variability in sexual identity development and self-labeling than generally accounted for in traditional sexual identity models. The present study examined lesbian and bisexual women's use of sexual identity labels, attitudes about sexual fluidity and self-labeling, and patterns associated with sexual identity processes. Two hundred nineteen women with same-sex attractions or experiences participated in the study, completing an anonymous online survey. The majority of participants (85.4%) identified as White, with ages ranging from 18 to 69. One hundred eighteen women identified as lesbian, 59 as bisexual, 5 as …


Microbiologically Influenced Corrosion And Titanate Conversion Coatings On Aluminum Alloy 2024-T3, Hong Cai Jan 2006

Microbiologically Influenced Corrosion And Titanate Conversion Coatings On Aluminum Alloy 2024-T3, Hong Cai

Open Access Dissertations

Due to its poor corrosion resistance, Aluminum alloy 2024-T3 has been targeted to study corrosion mechanisms and protection strategies. The present study has two areas of focus: (1) the effects of aquatic microorganisms on corrosion, and (2) the surface-cleaning step in the conversion coating process. Microorganisms and biofilms on solid surface can be found almost in any natural aqueous environments. So far, microbiologically influenced corrosion (MIC), or biocorrosion, has been poorly understood. A comparative study on the corrosion of aluminum alloy 2024-T3 was conducted in either plain seawater or nutrient-rich ZoBell 2216 medium, and with or without the marine bacterium …


Manatee Response To Environmental Noise, Jennifer L. Miksis-Olds Jan 2006

Manatee Response To Environmental Noise, Jennifer L. Miksis-Olds

Open Access Dissertations

The most pressing concerns associated with conservation of the endangered Florida manatee (Trichechus manatus latirostris) include habitat alteration and mortality caused by humans. Whereas considerable research has focused on manatee mortality associated with watercraft collisions, little attention has been paid to the impacts of noise created by watercraft. Potential effects of environmental noise on the habitat selection, distribution, and behavior of manatees are the foci of this dissertation, the primary goal of which was to understand and predict manatee behavior patterns as a function of environmental noise levels in the Sarasota Bay area. Manatee behavior was examined in terms of: …


"Defining A New Normal": An Exploration Of Psychosocial Adjustment In Young Adult Survivors Of Adolescent Cancer, Kristen J. Quinlan Jan 2006

"Defining A New Normal": An Exploration Of Psychosocial Adjustment In Young Adult Survivors Of Adolescent Cancer, Kristen J. Quinlan

Open Access Dissertations

Psycho-oncology has been limited by inconsistent definitions of adjustment, leading to inconsistent information about the correlates of adjustment among adult survivors of pediatric cancer. Further, adolescent survivors are seldom broken out for special analysis, even though there are vast medical and developmental differences between those diagnosed during adolescence and those diagnosed at a younger age. The current study utilized a mixed method approach examine adjustment with 7 female and 5 male survivors of cancer who were diagnosed during adolescence. Thematic analysis revealed that adjustment is the process of changing one's perspective or redefining oneself as one works to determine a …


The Horror Of Looking: Lynching And The Empathetic Eye, Greta Methot Jan 2006

The Horror Of Looking: Lynching And The Empathetic Eye, Greta Methot

Open Access Dissertations

During the summer of 2000, the New York Historical Society enjoyed its "biggest continuing attendance of any exhibition in years," with a collection of photographs entitled, Without Sanctuary: Photographs and Postcards of Lynching in America (Valdez 88). The more than seventy images featured, all taken between 1880 and 1961, illustrate in gruesome detail, a vicious chapter in American history. This exhibit, which is still making the rounds at U.S. art museums and was reproduced on the Internet and in a $60 coffee-table book, offers tremendous opportunity for critical thinking about the intersections of race, spectatorship, and violence in America. My …


An Examination Of The Relationship Between Perceived Parental Involvement And Adolescent Eating And Exercise Habits, Pamela Lea Steadman Jan 2006

An Examination Of The Relationship Between Perceived Parental Involvement And Adolescent Eating And Exercise Habits, Pamela Lea Steadman

Open Access Dissertations

Pediatric obesity is a major public health concern with alarming increases in prevalence rates over the past three decades, despite improvements in treatment and prevention efforts. Much of the focus on pediatric obesity prevention has revolved around children; however, little attention has been targeted toward adolescents. The current study is the first to examine the contribution of parental and adolescent perceptions of parental involvement in adolescent eating and exercise habits. Forty-six adolescent-parent dyads completed measures of perceived parental concern, responsibility, control and pressure exerted over adolescent health behaviors (AHB). Adolescents completed measures of current physical activity, eating habits, weight control …


Objectification Or Liberation? Bisexual And Lesbian Women's Experiences With Physical Appearance, Amy Black Jan 2006

Objectification Or Liberation? Bisexual And Lesbian Women's Experiences With Physical Appearance, Amy Black

Open Access Dissertations

Using a multi-method qualitative design and analytic approaches derived from grounded theory, the current study examined the appearance standards within lesbian and bisexual communities and how these norms relate to lesbian and bisexual women's psychological experiences with physical appearance. The study investigated how the women's diverse social identities relate to these experiences. Participants consisted of a relatively diverse sample of 24 bisexual (n = 10) and lesbian (n = 14) women who took part in 1 of 4 focus groups. From this sample, 4 bisexual women and 6 lesbians were recruited to participate in in-depth interviews. Participants represented a broad …