Digital Commons Network^™

Emotion In Motion: A Study On Representation Of Sculpture And Body Form By The Theme Of Human Emotion In Motion, Jiwon Han

Theses

This thesis explores the relationship between human emotion and physical expression. The ultimate objective is to communicate essential aspects of the human condition in order to improve understanding and appreciation of our common attributes. In this way, this study is intended to establish artistic identity of the human being through imaginative expressions. In the introduction, essential aspects of specific human emotions and the corresponding physical expressions will be identified. For my initial research, I studied the work of various inspiring artists in their portrayal of human emotions. I attempted to identify the expressions and techniques they used to communicate human …

Flutter-By Interactive Butterfly: Using Interactivity To Excite And Educate Children About Butterflies And The National Museum Of Play At The Strong’S Dancing Wings Butterfly Garden, Lydia Powers

Theses

The National Museum of Play at The Strong's Dancing Wings Butterfly Garden is a tropical rainforest that allows visitors to step into the world of butterflies, but lacks a more comprehensive educational element to teach visitors additional information about butterflies. Flutter-by Interactive Butterfly is a thesis project designed to enhance younger visitors' experience of the Dancing Wings Butterfly Garden with an interactive educational application that aligns with The Strong's mission of encouraging learning, creativity, and discovery. This was accomplished through a series of fun and educational games and animations, designed for use as a kiosk outside the garden and as …

First Steps Towards Minimizing Lead Exposure In An At-Risk Community In Mitrovica, Kosovo, Maxwell Scott

Theses

The city of Mitrovica, in northern Kosovo, has historically been a heavily contaminated city due to its lead mining industry. The long history of heavy metal mining and processing, combined with the violent break-up of Former Yugoslavia, has created a slew of human health, environmental, and social impacts. High levels of lead exposure in the minority communities (Roma, Ashkali, Egyptian) of Mitrovica has arisen as one of the greatest health issues in the area. There have been a number of studies conducted by governmental and non-governmental organizations, many international, to assess the severity of the issue. There have also been …

Identifying Medical Resident Stress With Work Domain Representation, Daniel Nystrom

Theses

Resident physicians must endure substantial amounts of stress to acquire the necessary skills and knowledge to become competent, certified physicians. Multiple factors that contribute to high levels of stress in different areas of the healthcare domain have been identified, but stress continues to be a major problem despite this knowledge and efforts to reduce it. This thesis describes a holistic approach to the problem of resident stress by employing methods of Cognitive Work Analysis to systematically review and organize relevant research literature, observations, interview responses, and survey information according to the area of the work domain where each stressor is …

Towards A Characterization Of Wetland Invasive Vegetation Using A Combination Of Field And Remote Sensing Techniques, Nicole Dutcher

Theses

Creation of compensatory wetlands has been required in the U.S. since the late 1980s in an attempt to offset the massive decline in freshwater wetlands. To meet permitting requirements, vegetation composition in mitigation wetlands must be monitored for a minimum of five years following creation. Unfortunately, mitigated wetlands often lack the functionality of natural wetlands and may form hotspots for invasive plant species. However, wetland assessment is a time-consuming process that may also disturb fragile nascent plant communities. Thus there is a need for approaches that minimize disturbance, but still enable the collection of data over large portions of the …

Hyperspectral Monitoring Of Chemically Sensitive Plant Sensors, Danielle Simmons

Theses

Current events clearly demonstrate that chemical and biological threats against the public are very real. Automated detection of chemical threats is a necessary component of a system that provides early warning of an attack. Plant biologists are currently developing genetically engineered plants that de-green in the presence of explosives (i.e. TNT) in their environment. The objectives of this thesis are to study the spectral reflectance phenomenology of the plant sensors and to propose requirements for an operational monitoring system using spectral imaging technology. Hyperspectral data were collected under laboratory conditions to determine the key spectral regions in the reflectance spectra …

Cross Section, Joanna Poag

Theses

I plan to make sculpture using modules to build monolithic structures. The sculptures will explore equilibrium as it relates to an interaction and balance between elements. Weight, both visual and physical, will be a key focus of each piece. The sculptures incorporate gravity and mass in a way that exaggerates or defies the weight of the pieces. The formal strategy of breaking symmetry is employed to develop sculptures that incorporate gravity and mass and express visual movement in opposition to predictable mathematical sequencing. Line is used as a sculptural means to explore form. It has been used in a way …

Functional Carbon Nanotubes For Electrical Conductors, Christopher Schauerman

Theses

Carbon nanotube (CNT) conductors are an enabling technology for advancing the efficacy of sustainable energy systems. In parallel, proactive consideration for each of the phases in the material life cycle can enhance device performance while minimizing unwanted impacts. Increasing the yield of CNTs through advances in synthesis will help reduce the electricity, chemicals, and costs associated with their production. Modifications to the nanoscale morphology (alignment, bundling, density and lower contact resistances) are needed to improve the CNT material properties to meet or exceed those of conventional metallic conductors. Also, a robust evaluation of methods for contacting carbon-based wires is needed …

A Study Of The Deer Herd On The Rit Campus And The Relationship Of Herd Activity And Habitat To The Incidence Of Deer-Vehicle Collisions, Philip Nau

Theses

This research project is designed to provide RIT with preliminary information on the possible impacts of campus landscape management and development on the resident deer herd. The project characterizes habitat variables, field observations, and movement patterns, and correlating that information with the incidence of deer-vehicle collisions on the roadways of campus and the surrounding area. The project utilizes geographic information systems (GIS) and remote sensing techniques, coupled with traditional ground-based observations, to estimate the distribution of the deer herd that make use of the RIT property and to establish a database and map of deer trails and high-use "hot spot" …

Packaging Print Buyer Willingness To Trade Off Image Quality For Environmental Benefits, Rattana Mayteekriengkrai

Theses

Consumers are increasingly concerned about environmental friendliness, in addition to product quality. However, widely used technologies are not yet capable of producing packaging that combines the highest level of image quality with the highest level of environmental friendliness. As a result, print buyers are forced to trade-off image quality for increased environmental friendliness. The amount of image quality that a print buyer is willing to trade-off for a given improvement in environmental friendliness is unknown. This is a problem for printers and print suppliers who are attempting to develop products without access to this potentially critical empirical design information. This …

The Electronic Medical Record: Designing With The Patient In Mind, Alyssa Costino

Theses

The transition from paper charts to Electronic Medical Records (EMR) is intended to create a more efficient health care industry. The use of EMRs eliminates paper waste and allows doctors and other medical staff to communicate with others conveniently wherever they happen to be located. Currently, the focus is on working through functionality and design issues in the hospital EMRs and getting doctors acquainted with how the EMR works. The patient focus has not been addressed at this time in terms of how they use and interact with their personal medical history. Based on my own personal experiences suffering from …

The Impact Of Daycare And Child Temperament On Parent-Child Interactions, Kyle Bersted

Theses

This study explored the potential impact of child temperament and daycare on behavior problems and parental sensitivity. It was expected that children with more "difficult" temperaments would exhibit more behavior problems and have less sensitive parents when experiencing high amounts of daycare. Measures from 60 families involved in the Southern Illinois Twins and Siblings Study (SITSS) were examined. Results indicated that highly active children exhibited more externalizing behaviors when experiencing less daycare. Shy children experiencing more daycare had more sensitive parents. Additionally, a temperamental difference between co-twins was related to differential parental sensitivity. Lastly, DZ co-twins were more temperamentally different …

Identifying Environment Of Origin Of Illinois River Asian Carp Via Otolith Microchemistry And Stable Isotope Analyses, Jacob Dylan Norman

Theses

Asian carp have rapidly expanded their range through much of the Mississippi River Drainage over the past 10 to 15 years. Silver and bighead carp are now the dominant fish species present along several reaches of the Illinois River. The upper Illinois River and shipping canals entering Lake Michigan are of great concern as pathways for Asian carp to enter the Great Lakes. Knowledge of reproductive habitats and dispersal pathways for these species may be valuable for ongoing and future efforts to control these exotic invasives. Previous studies have successfully identified spawning areas of native riverine species via otolith microchemistry, …

Product System Implications At End-Of-Life: An Economic And Environmental Assessment, Mark Krystofik

Theses

While there are many opportunities to make adjustments in how products are produced and consumed to reduce environmental impact, this dissertation focuses on product reuse and proposes a framework to evaluate the economic and environmental effects of proposed interventions in the product system that encourage end-of-life product to be guided toward environmentally preferred reuse or recycling paths. A novel aspect of the approach requires characterizing the product system structure to distinguish between those interventions that maintain the interaction dynamics amongst product system actors (producers, consumers and government), and those that alter the product system structure, enabling unintended consequences. The consumer …

Trade Liberalization And Agricultural Growth In Haiti, Elsie Despeignes

Theses

Liberalization has been, for the past three decades, one of the most prominent strategies used in the developing world to promote growth and foster development. Haiti, as many other least developed countries, has implemented the liberalization policies over the past two decades. The poor socioeconomic conditions of the Haitians, today, have pushed to question the effectiveness of the neoliberal plan. Agriculture being a pivotal sector of the Haitian economy, the study goal is the evaluation of liberalization on the agricultural production. The findings are that trade liberalization is detrimental to agriculture in Haiti. The food crops production, a major component …

Country Women: Back-To-The-Land Feminism And Radical Feminist Praxis In The Women's Liberation Movement, Jessica Louise Lynn

Theses

AN ABSTRACT OF THE THESIS OF JESSICA LOUISE LYNN, for the Master of Arts degree in HISTORY, presented on March 25, 2013, at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. TITLE: COUNTRY WOMEN: BACK-TO-THE-LAND FEMINISM AND RADICAL FEMINIST PRAXIS IN THE WOMEN'S LIBERATION MOVEMENT MAJOR PROFESSOR: Dr. Robbie Lieberman Historians of American History, cultural movements, the 60s-era, and even the counterculture frequently categorize second-wave feminism as a monolithic movement, its complexity minimized, its successes devalued. While there are a handful of feminist historians who have offered in depth, corrective histories to the popular narrative of the 60s-era, still missing from the historiography of …

The Sound Of Music: The Influence Of Evoked Emotion On Recognition Memory For Musical Excerpts Across The Lifespan, Sherrie L. Parks

Theses

TITLE: THE SOUND OF MUSIC: THE INFLUENCE OF EVOKED EMOTION ON RECOGNITION MEMORY FOR MUSICAL EXCERPTS ACROSS THE LIFESPAN Socioemotional Selectivity Theory (Carstensen, 1999) posits that as people age, they selectively focus on positive aspects of emotional stimuli as opposed to negative as a way of regulating emotions. Thus, older adults remember positive information better than negative. This hypothesis has been tested extensively with visual stimuli, but rarely with auditory stimuli. Findings from this study provide support in the auditory domain. In this study, 135 younger, middle-aged, and older adults heard consonant (pleasant) and dissonant (unpleasant) musical excerpts. Participants were …

The Effect Of Condtional Discrimination Training On Choice Making In Children During `Pre-Gambling' Activities, Leigha S. Shoup

Theses

Past research has shown conditional discrimination training of a stimulus to change its function by manipulating variables within the contingencies (e.g., Johnson & Dixon, 2009), and the present study attempted to extend this research. Experimenters exposed 3 children (ages 6-9 years) to a computer program that trained participant to discriminate between two contextual cures (blue and yellow) representing more than and less than. All three participants will demonstrate an increased preference toward the color that had been paired with more than during both conditional discrimination training phases.

The Realization For The English Voiceless Postalveolar Affricate /Tʃ/ In Najdi Saudi Esl Learners Production, Abdullah Ahmed Alqarni

Theses

The current study investigated the realization for the English voiceless postalveolar affricate /tʃ/ in Najdi Saudi ESL learners' production. The goal of the study was to investigate whether Najdi Saudi ESL learners have difficulties in pronouncing /tʃ/. Both linguistic and extra-linguistic factors were taken into consideration. Eighteen Najdi ESL learners' with different length of residency in the US were the sample of the study. Sixteen English words with /tʃ/ in initial and final position represented the instrument of the study. Data were analyzed using both SPSS and Speech analyzer software. The results showed that Najdi ESL learners have difficulties with …

Regional Wine Quality Reputation: The Perceptions And Possibilities In The Shawnee Hills Ava, Garrett Adam Hoemmen

Theses

AN ABSTRACT OF THE THESIS OF Garrett Adam Hoemmen, for the Masters of Science degree in Agribusiness Economics, presented on *April 3, 2013 at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. TITLE: REGIONAL WINE QUALITY REPUTATION: THE PERCEPTIONS AND POSSIBILITIES OF THE SHAWNEE HILLS AVA MAJOR PROFESSORS: Dr. C. Matthew Rendleman and Dr. Bradley Taylor There is a growing consumer preference for regional or “"terroir"” based products (Guy 2011). The designation of AVA status has the potential to increase the development of consumer identification with regional wine products. The presence of a distinguishing terroir is one of the prerequisites for the establishment of …

Forage Quality Of Andropogon Gerardii Across A Precipitation Gradient, Juliette Donatelli

Theses

This study focused on the ecotypic variation in forage quality of Andropogon gerardii Vitman, a dominant C4 grass in North American grasslands and an important forage grass for native and introduced grazers. Ecotypes are genetic variations of a plant species adapted to local environmental conditions. Andropogon gerardii is represented by many local ecotypes across its range. Forage quality analyses quantify digestibility and nutrition of a plant sample and allow an assessment of nutritional value for grazers. The variability in forage quality among A. gerardii ecotypes is unknown. This study aimed to quantify variation in forage quality of A. gerardii collected …

Requirements Of Change Management Necessary For Secondary School Leaders In The Emirate Of Abu Dhabi In Light Of New School Model., Fatima Salem Musabbeh Al Ka'abi

Theses

This study examines the requirements of change management necessary for secondary school principals in the emirate of Abu Dhabi in light of new school model through conducting change management requirements utilizing a questionnaire on secondary school teachers in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain Educational Zones during 2011-2012. The study employs a qualitative research paradigm, where there are 47items and one an open-ended question are combined in a questionnaire used to collect data. The sample included 1080 teachers from both sexes out of 72 schools in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain presenting cycle 3. The study found that the requirements of …

It's Hardly Noticeable, John Keedy

Theses

It's Hardly Noticeable attempts to make the abstract visually tangible and prompts a reconsideration of normalcy. Based both in academic research of psychology and personal experience with pathology, my photographs explore the world of a semi- autobiographical character who negotiates living with an unspecified mental illness and its impact on his thoughts and behaviors. As constructed tableaux, they exploit the relationship between fact and fiction, reality and perception, and truth and performance. The photographs question the legitimacy of applying the term `normal' in a societal context by prompting a reconsideration of what, if anything, is normal, or at least what …

Modeling And Condition Monitoring Of Fully Floating Reciprocating Compressor Main Bearings Using Data Driven Classification, Markus Holzenkamp

Theses

Condition monitoring reduces maintenance costs on industrial machinery by reducing downtime and allowing for need-based maintenance instead of schedule-based maintenance. Currently, condition monitoring is not as widely applied on reciprocating compressors as compared to rotating compressors. However, research for monitoring various components of reciprocating compressors such as inlet and outlet valves and piston rings is conducted. There is industry interest into expanding this research to the main bearings of the compressor. Previous research on bearings focuses on either rolling element bearings or traditional journal bearings with not much information available on low speed applications of fully floating ring journal bearings …

Global Routing Protocols For Wireless Body Area Networks, Nikhil Argade

Theses

This work primarily consists of two parts. The first part deals with a wireless body area network with battery operated nodes. Global routing protocols are considered. The Dijkstra`s algorithm was modified using a novel link cost function in order to perform energy balancing across the network. The proposed protocol makes optimal use of the network energy and increases the network lifetime. Hardware experiments involving multiple nodes and an access point are performed to gather wireless channel information. Performance of two different types of network architectures is evaluated viz. on-body access point and off-body access point architectures. Results show up to …

Surface Modification Of A Proton Exchange Membrane And Hydrogen Storage In A Metal Hydride For Fuel Cells, Lisa Andrews

Theses

Interest in fuel cell technology is rising as a result of the need for more affordable and available fuel sources. Proton exchange membrane fuel cells involve the catalysis of a fuel to release protons and electrons. It requires the use of a polymer electrolyte membrane to transfer protons through the cell, while the electrons pass through an external circuit, producing electricity. The surface modification of the polymer, Nafion®, commonly researched as a proton exchange membrane, may improve efficiency of a fuel cell. Surface modification can change the chemistry of the surface of a polymer while maintaining bulk properties. Plasma modification …

Life Is Good, Namdoo Kim

Theses

I want to investigate contemporary Korean society and its effect on people, particularly children as they represent the future of the Korean culture and society. Today, humans have entered into a contemporary society that values a marked individuality, but the parent's generation, which controls the society, is still conservative. Parents want to get satisfaction from their children by infusing their values. The children meanwhile are in chaos, confused between a rapidly changing society and the conservative values of their parents.

Toys represent the purity and innocence of childhood and it is through this purity and innocence of toys that people …

A Case Study Of Religious Engagement Online: How Malaysian Muslim Students Access Islamic Information, Mohd Mahadi

Theses

The spread of digital technology has expanded how people engage with religious information. Religious activities are no longer restricted to physical spaces as the Internet allows users to customize their religious experiences. This study, grounded in the uses and gratifications theory, explores how Malaysian Muslim students access religious information across two mediums: print and electronic media; as well as investigating the relationship between the preferred medium for accessing information and religious engagement. Malaysian Muslim students studying in Malaysia and the United States were recruited online for preliminary and in-depth interviews. The results show that access to the Internet, availability of …

Cross-Country Comparative Analysis Of Healthcare Financing In Western Balkans: Its Effect On Performance And Quality, Qendrim Sopjani

Theses

The principal aim of this paper is to critically assess the current situation of healthcare financing in the Western Balkan countries as it impacts the quality and performance of the system as a whole. This assessment shall be used to identify the current state of financing methods and quality of the healthcare sector in countries of Western Balkans. Specifically, by identifying the differences in financing healthcare sector among Western Balkan countries, this research paper measures the effect of financial means on the performance variables, as well as the relationship between the performance variables and the quality measurement variable i.e. life …

Reconsidering The Battered Woman Syndrome Defense For Women Who Kill, Krista J. Wiley

Theses

This paper considers two possible alterations to the current use of Battered Woman Syndrome (BWS) as a defense for the criminal act of murder. First, I will argue that BWS is best used as an excuse defense for murder. In the United States, BWS has historically been used as a justification defense for victims of long-term domestic violence who kill their abusers. A justification defense attempts to show that the criminal defendant’s action was warranted and justified while an excuse defense is meant to show that the criminal defendant is not fully responsible for her actions due to some mental …