Digital Commons Network^™

The Impact Of An Enrichment Program On Uae High School Students’ Creative Problem Solving Skills, Alyazia Sulaiman Alshehhi

Theses

Training human resources to be creative and innovate in the UAE had become a significant matter recently to stay within the stage of progressing towards a more dependable economy rather than oil. Gifted and talented individuals are the country's main resources, and way to progress. This study, therefore, aims to explore the impact of an enrichment program on improving UAE high school gifted students’ creative problem-solving skills. The sample included 78 gifted students from Abu Dhabi government schools. The students were grouped randomly into a control group (27 students), and an experimental group (30 students) who were exposed to a …

The Relationship Among Social Competence, Social Skills, And Academic Achievement For Students With Specific Learning Disability In The Uae, Amna Salem Al Yahyaee

Theses

The objective of this study is fourfold. To examine the relationship between a) parental involvement in their children’s education and social competence, b) parental involvement in their children’s education and their children’s academic achievement, c) parental involvement in their children's social competence and their children’s academic achievement, and d) parental involvement in their children's social competence and their children’s social skills. Thirty parents of children with specific learning disabilities participated in this study. Quantitative analysis was used in this study to answer the research questions. The results of this study revealed that there was no statistically significant relationship between parents’ …

Transcriptomic Analysis Of The Glycophytic Crop Ipomoea Aquatica Under Salinity Conditions Compared To Its Wild Halophyte Relative Ipomoea Pes-Caprae, Ruwan Saeed Aljneibi Husam Saeed Aljneibi

Theses

This study focuses on the glycophytic crop Ipomoea Aquatica (commonly known as water spinach) and its wild halophytic relative Ipomoea pes-caprae. I. Aquatica is a crop with economic value; however, it is unable to tolerate high levels of salinity. Whereas its relative Ipomoea pes-caprae is able to grow and thrive in the harsh environment of the UAE. The main aim of this study is to analyze the genetic differences underlying the variation in the two plants’ response to salinity and determine the genetic components that can be used to enhance I. Aquatica's tolerance to salinity. Accordingly, the plants were subjected …

Healthway: A Personal Health Record System For User To Manage Their Own Health Condition, Jie Zhang

Theses

The 21st century is the era of the Internet, big data, but also the era of AI. The vigorous development of AI and Internet technology has also injected fresh blood into the traditional medical industry. Today, the Internet affects every aspect of the medical and health industry. For example, medical providers can use the Electronic Health Record System (EHR) to quickly obtain the necessary information and data to assist them to make disease diagnoses. The remote consultation and consultation of medical staff also require the help of the Internet, especially the 5G Internet. In this context, the demands of individual …

Voicer: A Sign Language Interpreter Application For Deaf People To Better Communicate With Others, Yezhang Wang

Theses

In the past two decades, the rapid development of technology has made our daily life has changed dramatically. Everything has become easier and more convenient. However, while we can already communicate with people anywhere in the world in real time, most deaf and hard of hearing (HOH) people still need the intervention of a sign language interpreter to carry out their daily studies and work. Undeniably, Internet technology and smartphones have also significantly changed the lives of deaf people. But the barriers between them and the hearing world still exist. A significant number of studies have pointed out that cultural …

Using Ar And Vr Characters For Enhancing User Experience In A Museum, Kunal Shailesh Shitut

Theses

Museums and cultural heritage institutions have used technology to create interactive exhibits and pedagogical tools that help spark visitors’ interests. The rise of Augmented, Virtual and Mixed Reality Systems has further enabled the creation of a new generation of immersive experiences that can engage and educate visitors. These technologies can be used to develop digital characters that can serve as virtual tour guides and improve user engagement by answering questions and forming social bonds with the users. While such tour guides have been deployed as exhibits at many museums, the implementation is usually limited to a single exhibit or a …

Design For Hiking Safety & Fun, Tianyou Wu

Theses

With the urbanization of the world's population, more and more people have begun to choose outdoor hiking to get close to nature and get exercise. But outdoor hiking can be dangerous, and lack of relevant knowledge not only makes hikers have a poor or stressful time, but it can also be fatal. Losing your way in the wilderness encountering wild beasts, an unfamiliar poisonous plant, lack of physical strength, extreme weather, and other accidents will put many travelers into crisis every year. A safe and comfortable outdoor travel experience could not only increase the safety and fun of travel but …

Learning With Limited Labeled Data In Biomedical Domain By Disentanglement And Semi-Supervised Learning, Prashnna Kumar Gyawali

Theses

In this dissertation, we are interested in improving the generalization of deep neural networks for biomedical data (e.g., electrocardiogram signal, x-ray images, etc). Although deep neural networks have attained state-of-the-art performance and, thus, deployment across a variety of domains, similar performance in the clinical setting remains challenging due to its ineptness to generalize across unseen data (e.g., new patient cohort).

We address this challenge of generalization in the deep neural network from two perspectives: 1) learning disentangled representations from the deep network, and 2) developing efficient semi-supervised learning (SSL) algorithms using the deep network.

In the former, we are interested …

High Dynamic Range (Hdr) Display Perception, Fu Jiang

Theses

Displays have undergone a huge development in the last several decades. From cathode-ray tube (CRT), liquid crystal display (LCD), to organic light-emitting diode (OLED), even Q-OLED, the new configurations of the display bring more and more functions into industry and daily life. In the recent several years, high dynamic range (HDR) displays become popular. HDR displays usually refer to that the black level of the display is darker and the peak being brighter compared with the standard dynamic range (SDR) display. Traditionally, the peak luminance level can be used as the "white" in characterization and calibration. However, for HDR displays, …

The Last, Tony D. Riel

Theses

This thesis shares a collection of paintings that demonstrates my understanding of how to paint still lifes using oil paint. The tools, preparation, steps, and techniques other still life painters have used to create paintings were examined in-depth and were applied by me to create my still life paintings. Food is the subject of my paintings. My family’s eating habits and wastefulness of food were my sources of inspiration. My observations took place at the end of mealtimes because that is when I noticed that my family tends to not eat every piece of food. This often means there are …

Beginning Band: Cognitive Development Based Instruction, Kayla Price

Theses

This project focuses on how to facilitate a more efficient beginning band experience for students based on the average state of cognitive development for their age group. The primary focus is presenting an alternative to immediately starting students in a traditional band method book when they first begin band classes. The aim of the project is to study the cognitive development of the average sixth grader to best determine what instructional approach would best suit their processing abilities before introducing the band method book. Furthermore, the study exposes the fallacies of the traditional band method book system and suggests and …

Analyzing Emotion Regulation Using Multimodal Data, Geeta Madhav Gali

Theses

An emotion is a state of one's mind that derives from situations, mood, etc. Understanding people's emotions is a complex problem. People express their emotions using facial expressions or via voice modulations; also, they use emotion regulation strategies such as cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression in certain instances. Emotion regulation is a method by which we alter our emotions by changing how we express and perceive different situations. Understanding these emotional regulations helps to interact better, communicate and provide care. In this research, we analyze, visualize the differences and distinguish the emotions of disgust and humor with and without emotion …

Architecting A One-To-Many Traffic-Aware And Secure Millimeter-Wave Wireless Network-In-Package Interconnect For Multichip Systems, M Meraj Ahmed

Theses

With the aggressive scaling of device geometries, the yield of complex Multi Core Single Chip(MCSC) systems with many cores will decrease due to the higher probability of manufacturing defects especially, in dies with a large area. Disintegration of large System-on-Chips(SoCs) into smaller chips called chiplets has shown to improve the yield and cost of complex systems. Therefore, platform-based computing modules such as embedded systems and micro-servers have already adopted Multi Core Multi Chip (MCMC) architectures overMCSC architectures. Due to the scaling of memory intensive parallel applications in such systems, data is more likely to be shared among various cores residing …

The Impact Of Guided Reading On Kg1 Students’ Reading Performance, Nasibah Abdulrahman Alyousef

Theses

This thesis is concerned with finding the impact of applying guided reading activities on Kindergarten 1 (KG1) students’ reading performance. The current study focuses on two reading skills which are word recognition and reading comprehension. The main objective of this thesis is to examine how guided reading can affect KG1 learners’ reading performance. The research included 50 KG1 students as participants of the study. A quantitative research method was used. The data was collected via the use of pre-post test research instruments. The study found that guided reading has a positive impact on KG1 learners’ reading performance. The research results …

Expo 2020 Positive & Negative Sentiment, Tariq Albehandy

Theses

Sentiment analysis is the progression of detecting positive or negative sentiment in text. It’s often used by businesses to detect sentiment in social data, gauge brand reputation, and understand customers. Since customers express their thoughts and feelings more openly than ever before, sentiment analysis is becoming an important tool to monitor and understand that sentiment. Inevitably analyzing customer feedback, such as opinions in survey responses and social media conversations, allows brands to learn what makes customers happy or frustrated, so that they can tailor products and services to meet their customers’ needs. For example, using sentiment analysis to automatically analyze …

Diabetes Education In Vellore, India, Nirja Desai

Theses

The prevalence of diabetes mellitus has risen dramatically in developing countries over the past two decades, especially in India. There is a lack of awareness about the condition, how to treat it, and the symptoms of diabetes amongst the general population. Regular screening of adults is essential for early detection and care, but inadequate knowledge about type 2 diabetes is preventing the country from fighting a fair battle. Christian Medical College (CMC) in collaboration with Albert Einstein College of Medicine has taken the initiative to educate the general public and re-educate the physicians around the country about diabetes. There is …

Generation, Verification, And Attacks On Elliptic Curves And Their Applications In Signal Protocol, Tanay Pramod Dusane

Theses

Elliptic curves (EC) are widely studied due to their mathematical and cryptographic properties. Cryptographers have used the properties of EC to construct elliptic curve cryptosystems (ECC). ECC are based on the assumption of hardness of special instances of the discrete logarithm problem in EC. One of the strong merits of ECC is providing the same cryptographic strength with smaller key size compared to other public key cryptosystems. A 256 bit ECC can provide similar cryptographic strength as a 3072 bit RSA cryptosystem. Due to smaller key sizes, elliptic curves are an attractive option in devices with limited storage capacity. It …

Reuse Of Sewage Sludge Ash In Producing Self Compacting Concrete, Siham Saed (Moh’D Saeed) Al Shanti

Theses

Rapid growth of self-compacting concrete (SCC) marks a significant milestone in enhancing the product quality and effectiveness of the construction industry. This special type of concrete is known for its high flowability characteristics and surface finish without the tendency for segregation. To achieve the desired properties, the production of SCC requires high powder content, i.e. higher cement content. Cement production is considered to be an extreme energy intensive process; which is responsible for the emissions of a greenhouse gas such as carbon dioxide (CO₂). Recently, due to the current innovations and development worldwide, the rate of producing solid …

Analysis Of Nucleosomal Dna Patterns Around Transcription Factor Binding Sites, Sheethal Umesh Nagalakshmi

Theses

Nucleosomes are ~147bp DNA wrapped around the histone octamer which are involved in regulating gene transcription. They have the ability to disassemble depending on the process they are involved in and the nucleosome positioning controls the output of the genome. Therefore, it is important to understand the nucleosome positioning and how its positioning affects the binding of transcription factors (TFs) and gene expression thereby regulating the transcription outcome of the genome. Many studies suggest that TFs and nucleosomes compete with each other for genome accessibility. However, the majority of the studies focus on the nucleosome organization rather than underlying DNA …

Communication At The Core: Exploring Decision-Making When Communication Is At The Heart Of An Organisation’S Strategy Development, Sinead Hewson

Theses

This investigation considers whether the position, territory and scope of the public relations function in organisations influences strategic thinking, decision-making, and results. Scholars say communication is a strategic management function and has a significant role to play (Grunig J.E., Dozier and IABC Research Foundation 1992, pp. 325–356; Kitchen, 1997, pp. 43–73). Yet, the strategic expertise of communicators is neither understood nor acknowledged outside of the sector. The study’s investigation into the issue and level of access to industry opinion-makers adds to the strategy discussion, while the proposed model of Adaptive Communication contributes to new knowledge.

An Exploratory Study Of Change Management In The Irish Defence Forces For Implementing New Technologies., Paul Dermot Hegarty

Theses

The aim of this research is to determine if the Irish Defence Forces would benefit from the introduction of change management processes when implementing new technological systems. The extant theory has neglected to examine the application of change management processes in military organisations, a shortcoming this thesis addresses. The research draws on semistructured interviews undertaken with military and civil servant professionals from the Irish Defence Forces and the Department of Defence. Analysis of the interviews resulted in a number of new findings. The research highlighted the current deficiency in long-term funding and long-term strategic planning at the political level, and …

Smart Ageing And Renewal Through Entrepreneurial Skills Training, Sarah Davis

Theses

Globally, while the population is ageing, only 3% of older (≥65 years) adults are engaged in entrepreneurship. The Healthy Ageing agenda is responding to the population trends by increasing its focus on elements of active or productive ageing (incorporating older working) with quality of life as a primary outcome. Alignment and exploitation of the synergies between healthy ageing and older entrepreneurial engagement are lacking. Entrepreneurship education is broadening its focus and targeting inclusivity, albeit with as yet little focus on the older population. Older entrepreneurship, while tentatively linked with increased quality of life, has yet to receive direct attention in …

Adaptive Uplink Data Rate Prediction And Networkselection In A Vehicular Mobile Channel, Georgi Nikolov

Theses

The rapid acceleration into the digital age brings a worldwide interconnectedness of an unprecedented level. This interconnectedness transforms the modern transportation network by linking its infrastructure components (e.g., signaling systems, traffic control systems, maintenance systems) together. Intelligent transportation systems (ITS) can utilize this newly emerged network infrastructure, improving traffic safety, traffic control, and reducing transportation-related environmental impacts, changing the way drivers, businesses and governments deal with road transport. It is expected that in the near future self-aware vehicles (e.g., trains, cars or trucks) will constitute the majority of the transportation infrastructure. Vehicles need to be able to reliably communicate critical …

Material Handling System For An Advanced Flexible Manufacturing Environment, Con Cronin

Theses

A Flexible Manufacturing System (FMS) is a method of production that is designed to easily adapt to changes in the type and quantity of the product being manufactured. Machines and computerised systems can be configured to manufacture a variety of parts and to handle the changing levels of production that is required. The aim of this project was to investigate the current manufacturing processes of Kostal Ireland GmbH with the aim of developing a bespoke prototype material handling system to achieve flexible manufacturing. Kostal Ireland GmbH currently do not have the ability to change their manufacturing operations easily when a …

Producing Panic : An Analysis Of Conspiracy Theory Rhetoric During The Coronavirus Pandemic Of 2020, Aaron Andrews

Theses

In 1938, Orson Welles and his theatre group broadcasted an adaptation of War of the Worlds in the style of a breaking newsflash. The result produced a panic across America as millions believed they were under attack by an alien army. In 2020 during a global pandemic, millions of Americans turned to social media for news and updates, only to be the victims of conspiratorial posts that suggest the virus is part of a nefarious plot for world domination or to steal the Presidential election. In this thesis I will argue that the COVID-19 conspiracy theories share aspects of imagination, …

Machine Learning Classification Of Inundation Following Hurricane Florence (2018) Via L-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar And Ancillary Datasets, Alexander Melancon

Theses

During and after flooding events, mapping the extent of floodwaters aids in the distribution of resources, recovery efforts, and damage assessment practices. Development of a land cover classification system focused on mapping inundation after major hurricane events using synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data could allow for the production of near-real-time inundation mapping, enabling government and emergency response entities to get a preliminary idea of a developing situation. In response to Hurricane Florence of 2018, NASA JPL collected numerous swaths of quad-pol L-band SAR data with the Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) instrument observing the record-setting river stages across …

A Theology Of Confirmation From The Canon Of Scripture, Peter Pellicaan

Theses

In the last forty years, scholars have commonly referred to confirmation as the “sacrament in search of a theology.” While various works have offered a theology of confirmation in recent years, they have not employed an explicitly biblical method. In contrast, the early Church Fathers and ecclesiastical writers engaged an biblical method by employing a typological interpretation of scripture in order to understand baptism and the eucharist. In this sense, circumcision, the crossing of the Red Sea and the waters referred to in the creation narrative have been understood as prefiguring baptism; the Passover inaugurated by Moses in Egypt is …

Is There A Catholic Theology Of Masculinity?, Peter Holmes

Theses

In recent times Catholic theologians have begun to speak of a ‘feminine genius’. Yet relatively little attention given to the unique and positive contribution of masculinity and manhood to relationships, the Church and society. This thesis aims to answer the question, “Is there a corresponding ‘masculine genius?” It attempts to synthesise a specifically Catholic understanding of masculinity from the magisterial teaching of the Catholic Church, to determine a basis for development of the Catholic understanding of masculinity and to propose some lines of development for Catholic theology in this area.

Chapter One will establish the need for and purpose of …

Catholic Agency In International Society: An International Relations Analysis Of The Santa Marta Group, Marianne L. Rozario

Theses

This research examines the issue of Catholic agency in the academic discipline of International Relations (IR). Situated in the IR discourse on religion, its investigation is based on a select Catholic initiative in the international anti-slavery realm named the Santa Marta Group (SMG). It is a transnational Catholic-initiated and led coalition of predominantly Catholic and state actors collectively working together to eradicate modern slavery and human trafficking. I specifically analyse dimensions of the SMG from April 2014 to May 2018. Methodologically, a mixed-methods approach is adopted, combining a desk review and key informant interviews. This thesis has two interrelated questions …

Martuwarra First Law Multi-Species Justice Declaration Of Interdependence: Wellbeing Of Land, Living Waters, And Indigenous Australian People, Anne Poelina

Theses

The thesis is comprised of experiential research, poetry, film and peer reviewed publications, and book chapters culminating in twelve chapters and two appendices. The study is in the Kimberley region of northern Western Australia. The study used an Indigenous decolonising research paradigm. It calls for a powerful policy and investment approach to the planning and development of regional governance. The author engaged ‘cooperative participative inquiry’ with leaders from six independent Indigenous Nations. These Nations are connected through Warloongarriy, the First Law for Martuwarra, the Fitzroy River.

First law is the spirit that connects all things and promotes multispecies justice through …