Digital Commons Network^™

Reality Mining Techniques Applied To Telecommunication Data, Sunil Maharjan

Theses

In this thesis, the application of Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) techniques are examined in order to further develop and improve the field of Reality Mining. Reality Mining refers to the collection of machine sensed environmental data, from which, it is hoped future human social behaviour can be predicted. Large datasets for Reality Mining study have been generated by recording the patterns of human activity and social interactions over an extended period of time. Reality Mining techniques can provide information on important social clues for the better understanding of how humans live their lives. This information can then be used to help …

Coeffects Of Experience And Professional Interest On Slps' Assessment Of Chronic Aphasia: A Correlational Survey Study, Alivia Rachelle Berry

Theses

Abstract Background: Aphasia is a commonly treated language disorder; however there is discrepancy among professionals regarding classification and assessment practices (Code & Petheram, 2011; McNeil & Pratt, 2001). Current research focuses heavily on acute treatment; chronic aphasia is severely under-represented. A review of the literature revealed a wide array of standardized and non-standardized tests used to evaluate both acute and chronic aphasia cases. Overall, there appears to be variance in evaluation practices, especially among SLPs (Bland et al., 2013). Aims: The present study aims to quantify two variables that may account for this inconsistency in evaluation procedures: 1) years of …

Can Distractibility Facilitate Recall In Older Adults? The Role Of Affect And Hyper-Binding, Cassandra Dinius

Theses

As people age, they attend to and recall positive stimuli at a higher frequency than stimuli that is negative in valence. This `positivity effect' of older adults has been repeatedly demonstrated in the fields of human attention and memory. Studies have yet to examine the positivity effect within the realm of attentional inhibition, which was the focus of the current study. In the current study, both young and older adults were shown emotional images. These images varied in valence (negative, neutral, positive) and were superimposed with emotional words (also varying in valence). In the Adaptive condition of the study, participants …

Aura: Social Impacts Of Everyday Objects, Bijal Patwa

Theses

Today, the relationship between subject and object has been reversed, and we are becoming more and more technology dependent, resulting in objects ruling us. The physical presence of people is losing its value. Small incidents or situations between strangers might lead to meaningful relationships. Everyday objects, such as a coffee table, salt-pepper shakers or phones are ubiquitous and are part of our lives in a way that influences our cultural and social behavior. The effect these objects create is more important than the objects themselves. Hence the name “Aura”, for the objects created during my thesis. These objects have a …

Experimental Comparison Of Parametric Characterization Methods For Thermoelectric Generators, Reginald D. Pierce

Theses

Thermoelectric generator modules are solid-state semiconductor devices that convert heat directly to electricity. Because thermoelectric generators are small and free of moving parts, they are well suited to recovering waste heat from various processes, such as automotive exhaust, increasing the overall energy efficiency of the process. Waste heat recovery is becoming increasingly important as the global energy demand continues to rise. Recently, large improvements in thermoelectric materials have been realized as a consequence of better nanoscale materials science which show great promise, but accurate device-level characterization is needed in order to optimize device design. To date, a handful of different …

197_, Jason Paul Reimer

Theses

This past year, two life-altering events descended on my life within a few months of each other: the death of my sister from cancer, and the birth of my first child. Both were anticipated, but hit me with a kind of emotional power that I couldn’t have imagined until they actually happened. The extremes of the highs and lows these events brought induced a mental whiplash as I thought about what they meant, and how they would affect my family and me. Grief and celebration seldom inhabit the same place at once, but I found my-self living shoulder to shoulder …

Don’T Train In Vain: An Enterprise Information System Implementation Training Strategy, Luke Auburn

Theses

Universities often rely on complex information systems to manage student data. When higher education institutions implement enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems to replace legacy systems, they may introduce new processes, concepts, and terminology to the students, faculty, and staff who are the system’s end users. A well-executed training plan can foster end-user adoption and increase an implementation’s chance of success. This thesis project provides a blueprint for incorporating a training plan that best fits the needs of end users into an overall system implementation project plan. To effectively train end users, the training team must identify skill gaps, ascertain the …

Leveraging The Blac Model For Situation Awareness In Cip, Samah Mobarak Balkhair

Theses

Because critical infrastructure (CI) is considered to be the backbone of a nation’s livelihood, the Critical Infrastructure

Protection (CIP) program was established in 1998 by the American President as a directive to ensure the United States’ security and to keep it safe from any malicious attacks or unexpected disasters. However, protecting the critical infrastructure of this country has always been challenging, especially with the interdependencies among each sector, which increases its vulnerability. Any failure of one sector could cause a significant impact on the others. The Decision Support System (DSS) is a computer system that helps agencies make decisions based …

Fabrication Of Multibore Carbon Nanopipettes Using A Template-Based Nanomanufacturing Process, Ayomipo Arowosola

Theses

Currently, cancer accounts for nearly 1 of every 4 deaths in the United States which rates it as the second most common cause of death in the US, exceeded only by heart diseases. The detection, prevention and treatment of these death-causing diseases have necessitated and led to the development of novel tools for interfacing with single live cells –intracellular cell physiology. A major challenge, preventing the realization of effective and efficient intracellular physiology, is the lack of minimally invasive, nanoscale electrodes capable of probing cells without causing cell damage or death. Previous studies have succeeded in fabricating single nanoscale electrodes …

Risks Identification And Mitigation In Uav Applications Development Projects, Ahmed Yousif Mohsmed Idries

Theses

With the recent advances in aircraft technologies, software, sensors, and communications, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) can offer a wide range of applications. UAVs can play important roles in applications, such as search and rescue, situation awareness in natural disasters, environmental monitoring, and perimeter surveillance. Developing UAV applications involves integrating hardware, software, sensors, and communication components with the UAV’s base system. UAV applications development projects are complex because of the various development stages and the integration complexity of high component. This research addresses the business and technical challenges encountered by UAV applications development and Project Management (PM). It identifies the risks …

Applications Of Pure And Recycled Polymeric Micronanofiber For The Removal Of Oil Spills, Afra Gharib Khamis Al-Blooshi Al-Blooshi

Theses

Cleaning oil spills is a universal concern due to its environmental impact. The aim of this study is to study the effectiveness and applications of pure and recycled polymers in clean-up and the recovery of crude oil from oil spills. In this study, micro-nanofibers of analytical-grade and commercial polystyrene samples were prepared by electrospinning technique. Fiber size distribution was shown to vary with the electrospinning parameters and type of polymer. Fibrous sorbents prepare hereafter were investigated for their efficiency in removing oil spills. Results showed a variation in the sorption capacities of the fibers to various types of crude oils …

Adsorption Of Dyes On Activated Carbon From Agricultural Wastes, Maliha Parvin

Theses

Adsorption of dyes as a remediation technique for dye-loaded wastewater remains an area of interest. On the one hand, adsorption using bio-derived, renewable sorbent materials can be seen as environmentally friendly, on the other hand adsorption can provide us with a trouble-free, commercially cheap operation. The main objective of this thesis is adsorption of the dyes Crystal Violet (CV) and Nile Blue (NB) on activated carbon derived from date palm leaf wastes. For this purpose, activated carbon was prepared via chemical treatment of palm leaf wastes with sulfuric acid (H2SO4), phosphoric acid (H3PO4), and nitric acid (HNO3), respectively, with subsequent …

Mathematical Modeling Of Communicable Imported Diseases Screening In The United Arab Emirates, Lahbib Ben Ahmadi

Theses

The United Arab Emirates (UAE), as one of the countries with high numbers of expatriates in the world, is expected to face public health challenges. The reason for this situation is that the majority of those expatriates belong to regions where health issues are usually left behind. This may create the possibility of having imported communicable diseases. However, screening policy should be tested and adapted to protect the population from any imported communicable disease. This study aims at identifying an approach and method to deal with these imported diseases via a set of differential equations. The spread of a communicable …

Distribution Of Ghrelin In Pancreatic Islet Cells Of Normal And Diabetic Rats And Its Effect On Diabetes Mellitus, Haba Y. M. El Abadlah

Theses

Ghrelin, a 28-amino acid peptide, is identified as the endogenous ligand of the orphan growth hormone secretagogue-receptor type 1a. Ghrelin presents a unique modification at Ser3 position essential for its activity. It was first discovered in the stomach of rat in 1999. Aside from ghrelin’s role as a potent growth hormone secretagogue and food intake modulator, ghrelin is thought to play a role in insulin and glucagon secretion and in glucose homeostasis. A lot of contradictory data have been reported in the literature regarding ghrelins co-localization with other hormones in the islets of Langerhans, its role in insulin secretion and …

Applications Of Pure And Recycled Polymeric Micro-Nanofiber For The Removal Of Oil Spills., Afra Gharib Khamis Al Blooshi

Theses

Cleaning oil spills is a universal concern due to its environmental impact. The aim of this study is to study the effectiveness and applications of pure and recycled polymers in clean-up and the recovery of crude oil from oil spills. In this study, micro-nanofibres of analytical-grade and commercial polystyrene samples were prepared by electrospinning technique. Fiber size distribution was shown to vary with the electrospinning parameters and type of polymer. Fibrous sorbents prepared hereafter were investigated for their efficiency in removing oil spill. Results showed variation in the sorption capacities of the fibers to various types of crude oils with …

This Thesis Is Submitted In Partial Fulfillment Of The Requirements For The Degree Of Master Of Science In Information Technology Management, Farhan Mohammed

Theses

A large number of recent advancements in the technology of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have enabled them to be very useful and effective in many applications in today’s society. They demonstrate a high degree of stability and agility in the air. A few years ago military applications were the main driving force behind the development of UAVs and UAV systems. Many of their applications included monitoring, surveillance, data transmission and communication. Recently, several opportunities have emerged and participated in driving the development of UAV technology further ahead. Such opportunities include integration of UAVs with smart cities, disaster recovery, military and …

Principals' Instructional Leadership Practices And Their Relationship To Teachers' Instructional Practices In Sharjah Schools, Hayat Mohamed Al Hosani

Theses

Instructional leadership has become one of the most widely researched topics. This type of leadership has been connected to teacher growth and development, teacher job satisfaction, student achievement, and improving school climate in general. This study focuses on instructional leadership in schools of Sharjah Education Zone. Specifically, the study aims to describe the principal instructional leadership practices, to identify the most and least important teachers' instructional practices, and to investigate whether there is a relationship between the principals' instructional practices and teachers' teaching practices. This study is quantitative in nature and therefore a questionnaire was used to collect data from …

Lexical Knowledge Of Verb-Particle By Saudi English Learners, Fadwi Waleed Alturki

Theses

Verb-particle constructions are one of the most complex components of the English language. Understanding and producing such difficult constructs in a second language (L2) is a challenge for L2 learners of English. This research was based on the study by Blais and Gonnerman (2013). The purpose of the current study was to measure American and Saudi participants' sensitivity to the degree of semantic similarity between verb/verb-particle constructions. The survey of similarity ratings was administered to 107 American native English speakers and 67 Saudi English learners. The participants were asked to rate 78 items based on their knowledge of the semantic …

Principals’ Instructional Leadership Practices And Their Relationship To Teachers’ Instructional Practices In Sharjah Schools., Hayat Mohamed Abdalla Al Hosani

Theses

Instructional leadership has become one of the most widely researched topics. This type of leadership has been connected to teacher growth and development, teacher job satisfaction, student achievement, and improving school climate in general. This study focuses on instructional leadership in schools of Sharjah Education Zone. Specifically, the study aims to describe the principal instructional leadership practices, to identify the most and least important teachers’ instructional practices, and to investigate whether there is a relationship between the principals’ instructional practices and teachers’ teaching practices. This study is quantitative in nature and therefore a questionnaire was used to collect data from …

Potential Of Greywater Reuse And Its Effects On Potable Water Demand Management And Downstream Sewer Network, Muhammad Ashfaque Rajput Abdul Hameed

Theses

The UAE’s water demand is rapidly increasing because of population growth, infrastructure development, expansion of agricultural practices and for the desert greening policies. These circumstances force the country to depend on expansive desalinated water and made the country second largest desalination water producer in the world. It is essential to reduce the current water consumption rates by using efficient methods and conservation techniques. Greywater reuse is an effective and promising alternate to cope with this challenge. The study aimed to reduce the water consumption in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi by investigating the potential of greywater reuse. A field survey …

Potential Of Greywater Reuse And Its Effects On Potable Water Demand Management And Downstream Sewer Network, Muhammad Ashfaque Rajput Abdul Hameed

Theses

The UAE’s water demand is rapidly increasing because of population growth, infrastructure development, expansion of agricultural practices, and desert greening policies. These circumstances force the country to depend on expansive desalinated water and made the country the second-largest desalination water producer in the world. It is essential to reduce the current water consumption rates by using efficient methods and conservation techniques. Greywater reuse is an effective and promising alternative to cope with this challenge. The study aimed to reduce water consumption in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi by investigating the potential of greywater reuse. A field survey was carried out …

Analysis Of Cycle 2 Science Textbooks Representation Of Scientific Literacy And Readability Level, Aisha Abdulla Salem Al Qaydi Al Qaydi

Theses

For over half a century, textbooks have played a decisive role in teaching and learning activities. In today’s classrooms, textbooks serve as primary teaching instruments and greatly influence how knowledge is delivered and communicated. With the development of the society, a majority of teachers use textbooks to guide their instruction. On the other hand, readability of textbooks is an important construct for both educators and textbook authors. Finding the right fit between the students’ reading ability and the text difficulty is an important and challenging task for teachers. This study is about how scientific content is presented and represented in …

Efficient Data Communication In Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, Farhan Mohamed

Theses

A large number of recent advancements in the technology of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have enabled them to be very useful and effective in many applications in today’s society. They demonstrate a high degree of stability and agility in the air. A few years ago military applications were the main driving force behind the development of UAVs and UAV systems. Many of their applications included monitoring, surveillance, data transmission and communication. Recently, several opportunities have emerged and participated in driving the development of UAV technology further ahead. Such opportunities include integration of UAVs with smart cities, disaster recovery, military and …

Optimal Packaging Of Mason-Pfizer Monkey Virus (Mpmv) Genomic Rna Depends On Conserved Long Range Interactions Between U5 And Gag Complementary Sequences, Rawan M. Khaleel Kalloush

Theses

Employing a combination of genetic and biochemical approaches, we have recently shown that the 5’ end of MPMV genome (from the first nucleotide in R up to 120 nt of Gag) contains a number of sequence and structural motifs important for MPMV gRNA packaging and dimerization. A distinguishing feature of the higher order structure of MPMV packaging signal RNA is two long-range interactions (LRI) between U5 and Gag complementary sequences, LRI-I and LRI-II, which are phylogenetically conserved among different MPMV strains. These LRIs have been suggested to play a role in stabilizing the RNA secondary structure of the 5’ UTR …

Control Of Radiation Exposure To Paediatric Patients At Conventional Radiology And Cardiac Centers At Dubai Hospital, Najlaa Khalfan Saeed Almazrouei

Theses

In view of increasing the number of x-ray examinations over the years, paediatric radiation safety is considered as one of the critical subjects in the modern medical imaging. Paediatric patients are at higher risk from ionizing radiation than adults if they receive same amount of dose. This project was conducted to evaluate paediatric patient radiation dose levels in digital radiology (both fixed and mobile x-ray units) and interventional cardiology at Dubai Hospital. The results of this study are expected to contribute in establishing local and national diagnostic reference levels in United Arab Emirates (UAE). A combination of phantom studies and …

Parents Attitude Towards Inclusion Of Students With Disabilities Into The General Education Classrooms, Maitha Khalifa Ali Al Neyadi

Theses

This study aims at examining parents’ attitude toward including students with disabilities into the general education classrooms. The objectives of this study are threefold as follows: a) investigating parents' attitudes towards including children with disabilities in the general education classrooms, b) examining whether there is a difference in attitude between parents of children with and without disabilities, and c) examining the influence of the child's severity level on parents’ attitudes toward inclusion. Participants were 100 parents ( 50 parents of children with disabilities from a rehabiltation centers, and 50 parents of children without disabilities). The research employed a quantitative analysis …

Hate Speech And The Status Of Prisoners, Logan Richard Baseley

Theses

Drawing from feminist and critical race theorists’ analyses of pornography and racist speech, I advance an argument in favor of speech regulations vis-à-vis prison rape films. I call ‘prison rape films’ (PRFs) those films that depict prison rape humorously, as narrative springboards, or as unnecessary tangents. I explore why such films ought to be regulated by pointing out the harms these films have on prisoners. In doing so, I examine what it is to be a ‘historically oppressed group’ and what makes such groups particularly vulnerable to hate speech. Prisoners are a historically oppressed group that is harmed by prison …

Darkness Of Draws, Catherine Louise Howl

Theses

“Darkness of Draws” is a collection of poems that I have written and compiled over a period of years before and during my time in the M.F.A. program. I have interwoven and overlapped themes drawn from my life, of mental illness and religion experienced within the tightly knit boundaries of family; to my dual life as a fine artist working in the genres of painting and sculpture; to the complexities of intimate love relationships, as well as my historical roots in Southern California and the settings of my every day observations where people, places and things become imagistic in form, …

Is Natural Normativity True Normativity?, Amy Lawson Broadway

Theses

In this thesis, I describe two notions of normativity: John Broome’s theory of ‘true normativity’ and Philippa Foot’s theory of natural normativity. Both theories attempt to explain what determines how an individual ought to behave. Broome argues natural normativity is not true normativity. He claims natural normativity only describes the good of an organism and does not account for what a person ought to do. I argue this is a mistaken claim based on the assumption that what is evaluative and descriptive are necessarily separate. In addition, I argue Broome expresses inconsistent views. He thinks prudence is a source of …

Baby Bidet, Lei Hong

Theses

This thesis introduces a unique childcare product named Baby Bidet for babies and young couples. Most infants defecate four to six times and urinate ten times daily. The most commonly used product to contain these substances is a diaper. The problem is that diapers spreads feces across a baby’s bottom and thus frequently cause diaper rash. When parents clean the feces from their babies’ bottom, many of them feel disturbed.

This project, in part through market research, has gathered a lot of information about diapers, diaper rash, baby wipes, the process of changing diapers, and so on. Moreover, in order …