Digital Commons Network^™

Weather's Influence On The Phenological Period Length And Yield Of Mississippi Soybeans, Sarah Kathleen Mcatee

Theses and Dissertations

The climate of Mississippi has been considered to be ideally suited for the production of soybeans. Many studies have shown the influence of weather on crops, but none that specifically attempt to pinpoint which aspects of weather have an impact on the Mississippi soybean crop. The purpose of this study was to determine what affect weather has on the phenological period length and yield of Mississippi soybeans. Data on bean phenological periods and yield used in this research were recorded as a part of soybean variety testing conducted at Delta Research and Extension Center in Stoneville, Mississippi from 1976-2000. The …

Improving Children's Reading Comprehension Skills Through Parental Involvement, Aughtney D. Khan

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of parental involvement upon children's reading achievement. The study investigated whether children with learning difficulty would improve reading comprehension when parents became actively involved in their child's reading activities. Five 3rd and 4th grade students attending a small private school in southern New Jersey, together with their parents, participated in this family reading program. They were identified as average readers who were having difficulty in comprehension. Prior to the start of the family reading program, students were individually administered a pre-reading inventory. Each student read 3 selected books and answered …

Minor League Baseball Pr Guidelines: Techniques For First Year Class A Teams, John Sadak

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this thesis was to accumulate information relative to the various public relations practices, methods and procedures utilized by the 60 Class A Minor League Baseball teams and to determine the extent of common public relations elements. Although the 60 teams are located in different markets, results of interviews and surveys of the teams led the author to conclude that some current practices are common among them.

Phone interviews were conducted with four practitioners to determine a preliminary list of items important to a Minor League Baseball promotional campaign. From that list a survey was created and mailed …

Isolated Ventricular Myocyte Contractile Function Is Depressed In Rats Fed High Fat And/Or Marginally Copper -Deficient Diets., David P. Relling

Theses and Dissertations

Obesity is influenced by dietary consumption of fat while much of the population consumes a diet deficient of the trace mineral copper. Obesity and copper deficiency can alter cardiovascular function; including cardiac hypertrophy, increased myocyte lipid droplet volume, and cardiac contractile depression. Interestingly, lipotoxic dysfunction is characterized by many of the same mechanistic alterations that are observed in obesity and copper deficiency. Additionally, the sphingolipid ceramide is elevated in lipotoxic dysfunction. However, functional leptin:leptin receptor signaling prevents lipotoxic dysfunction. The purpose of my dissertation was to determine the role of a high fat and marginal copper deficient diet on cardiac …

A Taxonomy Of E-Commerce Risks And Failures, Giridharan Vilangadu Vijayaraghavan

Theses and Dissertations

Imagine being asked to test an e-commerce website. If you haven't tested one before, where would you start? What experience would you draw on? Where would you look for more information? Even very experienced testers have blind spots when they try to generate test ideas for an application that they have not tested. This thesis presents a simple outline that will help you generate test ideas and limit your blind spots. The outline is the result of about 18 months of research on classifying e-commerce related failures and risks. The result has 45 top-level categories and 700+ examples of errors …

Status Of Migratory Shorebirds At An Inland Stopover Site In The Northern Plains Prairie Pothole Region, Corinne A. Carey

Theses and Dissertations

Teeming with macroinvertebrates, hundreds of tiny wetlands dotting the prairie region of North Dakota provide nutrient rich foraging sites for large numbers of migratory shorebirds. Because these wetlands are typically small, dispersed and ephemeral, documentation of shorebird numbers in the region has been a difficult task. Large variation in survey data has resulted in an overall underestimate in the value of this shorebird habitat.

To assess the status of local migratory shorebirds, I conducted weekly shorebird surveys at eight sites within Kelly's Slough National Wildlife Refuge. These surveys included a bi-weekly inventory of resident invertebrates, a well established prey base …

Funding And Implementing A Sixth Grade Environmental Camping Trip, Stewart Potter

Theses and Dissertations

The focus of this study was to research methods to fund a sixth grade camping trip to Mt. Misery in Browns Mills, New Jersey. The local school budget was defeated, so a group of parent volunteers formed a group called P.A.N.T.H.E.R. (Parents And Neighbors Together Helping with Educational Resources) and began to think of ways to raise $32,498.10 so their children would enjoy the same experience as those students before them. The parent committee created a distributed a survey to all of the upcoming sixth grade parents on June 10, 2002. A total of 59.3% of the surveys were returned. …

An Analysis Of Microbial Contamination In Military Aviation Fuel Systems, Harold W. Graef

Theses and Dissertations

Military aviation fuel systems can be an ideal environment for microorganisms. Microbial growth in hydrocarbon fuel systems arises because of the impracticality of keeping fuel tanks sterile and the inevitable presence of water from condensation. Microbial contaminants in aviation fuel systems are a concern because of their potential to degrade the fuel, accelerate tank corrosion, and threaten flight safety. This research addresses the concern of using more environmentally friendly Fuel System Icing Inhibitors (FSII), which are also biocidal. Are significant levels of microorganisms growing in military aviation fuel systems, and if so, are there any common variables? Forty aviation fuel …

Search Theory And U-Boats In The Bay Of Biscay, Ronald Gregory Carl

Theses and Dissertations

Threats to our nation's resources and forces are becoming increasingly lethal and mobile. Therefore, our ability to locate and interdict these threats is more important than ever. Search theory is one tool that is vital to countering the increasing threat. This research presents a multi-agent simulation, built around the Allied search for U-boats in the Bay of Biscay during World War II, which extends several classic search theory algorithms. Comparison of techniques is based on the effectiveness of finding high- valued, mobile assets. A JAVA-based multi-agent simulation model is designed, built and tested, and used to demonstrate the existence of …

Optimizing An In Situ Bioremediation Technology To Manage Perchlorate-Contaminated Groundwater, Mark R. Knarr

Theses and Dissertations

Combining horizontal flow treatment wells (HFTWs) with in situ biodegradation is an innovative approach with the potential to remediate perchlorate-contaminated groundwater. A technology model was recently developed that combines the groundwater flow induced by HFTWs with in situ biodegration processes that result from using the HFTWs to mix electron donor into perchlorate-contaminated groundwater. A field demonstration of this approach is planned to begin this year. In order to apply the technology in the field, project managers need to understand how contaminated site conditions and technology design parameters impact technology performance. One way to gain this understanding is to use the …

A System Dynamics Investigation Of Genetic Drift And Translocation In The Red-Cockaded Woodpecker Metapopulation, Jason E. Yates

Theses and Dissertations

The red-cockaded woodpecker (Picoides borealis) is classified under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 as an endangered species As such, the red-cockaded woodpecker (RCW) is afforded strict protection in an effort to return the RCW population to a self-sustainable level. Endemic to southeastern United States mature pine forests, the presence of the RCW impacts the operations of many Department of Defense (DoD) installations. A particular challenge in sustaining what are often small populations of RCW at these locations is the loss of genetic variation due to genetic drift. The optimal method for mitigating such loss is through the artificial immigration, …

Deterministic Intracellular Modeling, Jacqueline B. Young

Theses and Dissertations

The United States Air Force is interested in the potential side effects at the cellular level from exposure to mission-essential chemicals. Presently, Air Force toxicology studies are conducted to help shed light in identifying potential hazards to workers. However, it takes a considerable amount of money, resources, and time to obtain and analyze experimental results from toxicology studies. The necessity for innovative methods that enable researchers to more effectively generate and analyze data is apparent.

The Effect Of Interactivity And Instructional Exposure On Learning Effectiveness And Knowledge Retention: A Comparative Study Of Two U.S. Air Force Computer-Based Training (Cbt) Courses For Network User Licensing, Matthew J. Imperial

Theses and Dissertations

The United States Air Force (USAF) currently employs the use of computer-based training (CET) across a host of requirements. One such requirement is in the Information Assurance (IA) arena and involves the training/licensing of over one-million computer network end-users. USAF use of CETs has been shown to possess a potential for substantial fiscal savings. However, studies investigating the learning outcomes of learning effectiveness (initial learning) and knowledge retention (sustained learning) associated with USAF CETs are lacking.

The Air Force Operational Risk Management Program And Aviation Safety, Matthew G. Cho

Theses and Dissertations

Aviation mishaps are extremely costly in terms of dollar value, public opinion, and human life, The Air Force drastically reduced Class A mishap rates in its formative years. The rate plummeted from 44.22 mishaps per 100,000 flight hours in 1947 to 2.33 mishaps in 1983 and has held steady around 1.5 mishaps since. The Air Force implemented the Operational Risk Management (ORM) program in 1996 in an effort to protect their most valuable resources: aircraft and aviators. An AFIT thesis conducted in 1999 by Capt Park Ashley studied the Army similar Risk Management (RM) program. Ashley concluded that since his …

Hybrid Control Strategies For Rapid, Large Angle Satellite Slew Maneuvers, David B. French

Theses and Dissertations

This research investigated hybrid control strategies for rapid satellite pointing. First, a detailed computer simulation model of AFIT's SIMSAT satellite simulator was constructed. Control strategies were developed to enable the system to perform large-angle, 3-axis slewing maneuvers using a combination of both thrusters and reaction wheels. To handle the non-linear model, a State Dependent Riccati Equation controller was programmed and successfully controlled the computer-modeled satellite for any given slewing maneuver. A simpler PD controller was then programmed and demonstrated on the computer simulation of SIMSAT, using a combination of thruster and reaction wheel control inputs for large-angle single axis maneuvers …

A Simulation-Based Analysis Of The Impact Of In-Sourcing A Major Process Element On The Coast Guard Hh-601 Depot Maintenance Process, Steven E. Vigus

Theses and Dissertations

Leaders at the United States Coast Guard's Aircraft Repair and Service Center (ARSC) in Elizabeth City, North Carolina recently formalized their planning and analysis functions by adding a dedicated branch to their command structure. The Planning and Analysis Branch intends to apply computer modeling and simulation to study the impact of process changes to the various Programmed Depot Maintenance (PDM) lines. This research considers the applicability of this type of modeling and simulation, using ARENA to study the current HH-6OJ PDM process. The contribution of this research is a methodology specific to ARSC needs, an analysis of methodology based on …

Uml Assisted Visual Debugging For Distributed Systems, Benjamin R. Musial

Theses and Dissertations

The DOD is developing a Joint Battlespace Infosphere, linking a large number of data sources and user applications. To assist in this process, debugging and analysis tools are required. Software debugging is an extremely difficult cognitive process requiring comprehension of the overall application behavior, along with detailed understanding of specific application components. This is further complicated with distributed systems by the addition of other programs, their large size and synchronization issues. Typical debuggers provide inadequate support for this process, focusing primarily on the details accessible through source code. To overcome this deficiency, this research links the dynamic program execution state …

Modeling Catalytic Destruction Of Subsurface Contaminants In Recirculating Wells, Kerry J. Cadena

Theses and Dissertations

Groundwater and soil contamination is a significant problem throughout the nation, with approximately 300,000 to 400,000 sites affected (National Research Council, 1994). Examples of groundwater contaminants of special interest to DoD and AF installations include fuel hydrocarbons, chlorinated hydrocarbons, and nitroaromatic compounds. Traditional remediation technologies, which include pump-and-treat, permeable reactive barriers, and natural attenuation, have numerous drawbacks associated with them. These drawbacks have prompted researchers to look for innovative contamination clean-up methods. The technology investigated in this thesis, reticulating horizontal flow treatment wells (HFTWs) with in-well palladium (Pd) catalyst reactors, offers the potential for destruction of groundwater contaminants commonly found …

Groundwater Flow Through A Constructed Treatment Wetland, Jack A. Blalock

Theses and Dissertations

This study is an analysis of the flow of water through a constructed treatment wetland at Wright-Patterson AFB, OH. The purpose of the treatment wetland is to biodegrade perchioroethylene, which is present in the groundwater as a contaminant. Contaminated water enters the bottom of the wetland and flows upward, exiting the wetland from a weir at one end. The wetland is designed for water to move vertically through the soil layers composing the wetland. The main purpose of this study is to characterize the water flow through the different layers of soil in the wetland. In this study, hydraulic parameters …

Understanding The Dynamic System Of Terrorist - Government Interaction, John A. Hanrahan

Theses and Dissertations

The nature of action and reaction that forms the basis for terrorist - government interactions creates a dynamic system. Understanding how this dynamic system behaves in response to key government activities can help the government better control the overall behavior of the system. The system dynamics methodology is one tool that can help the government solve specific behavioral problems within the overall system. This research shows the ability of system dynamics to help develop government policy towards terrorism that can directly affect a terrorist's behavior. It supports a government policy of offensive action instead of defensive reaction. It also identifies …

Remote Sensing Systems Optimization For Geobase Enhancement, Steve J. Paylor

Theses and Dissertations

The U.S. Air Force is in the process of implementing GeoBase, a geographic information system (GIS), throughout its worldwide installations, Air Force GIS needs can be augmented by imagery from aerial and satellite platforms. Imagery has greatly improved over the past several years and provides high resolution coverage of features on earth. Various imagery types will significantly increase GeoBase usefulness in a range of mission requirements, Potential Air Force uses of imagery include identifying heat loss, environmental monitoring, command decision-making, and emergency response, The research develops a decision tool to determine the appropriate imagery for a given Air Force Application, …

Implementation And Validation Of A Real-Time Wireless Non-Invasive Physiological Monitoring In A High-G Environment, H. Aydin Akcivi

Theses and Dissertations

The overall purpose of this research is to develop a system capable of real-time personal positioning and physiological monitoring. The system will be composed of a shirt having non-invasive physiological sensors, Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver, wireless data transceiver, and real-time PC-based control station. The specific purpose of this research phase was to determine the performance capabilities of a modified LifeShirt™ alone (without GPS) in a high gravitational force environment with the data being sent wirelessly in real-time. The LifeShirt™ was modified with a real time wireless transmission system.

Simulation Of Autonomic Logistics System (Als) Sortie Generation, Paul D. Faas

Theses and Dissertations

The Air Force needs tools for analysis and evaluation of new logistic operational concepts. The purpose of this research was to conflict a discrete event simulation model of the aircraft sortie generation process to permit what-if analyses of these concepts. The current Air Force logistics operations system is reactive in nature meaning that after the aircraft detects a part failure, the maintenance person must perform fault isolation procedures and then steps are taken to repair or replace the faulty item. The Autonomic Logistics System (ALS) concept changes the reactive process into a proactive one with the employment of technologies such …

Analysis Of Cooperative Behavior For Autonomous Wide Area Search Munitions, Orhan Gozaydin

Theses and Dissertations

This research investigates the effectiveness of autonomous wide area search munitions using cooperative and non-cooperative behavior algorithms under various scenarios. The scenarios involve multiple autonomous munitions searching for an unknown number of targets with different priorities at unknown locations. For the cooperative cases, communications are allowed between the munitions to help locate, identify, and decide to pursue an attack on a target or to continue searching the rest of the battlefield. For non cooperative cases, munitions independently search, detect, identify and decide to attack an identified target or continue to search. Performance of the cooperative munitions depends on numerous parameters …

The Characterization Of The Expression And The Function Of Slrps In The Human Sclera., Janell Mae Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

The collagenous network of the extracellular matrix (ECM) contributes to the strength and organization of connective tissues. Interspersed among this collagenous network, are a number of tissue specific proteoglycans (PG's) that are thought to guide matrix assembly and organization through protein/protein and/or protein/carbohydrate interactions. In recent literature, attention has been focused on a small leucine rich PG family (SLRPS) found to bind a variety of ECM components via their core proteins. The family is made up of nine members including: decorin, biglycan, lumican, fibromodulin, proline arginine end leucine rich repeat protein (PRELP), keratocan, chondroadherin, epiphycan, and osteoglycin. Recent studies have …

The Portrayal Of People With Mental Retardation In Contemporary Children's Literature., Linda Noel Blackston Marsh

Theses and Dissertations

Literature plays an important role in the social development of children by encouraging them to become responsive to the feelings of others and encouraging positive attitudes toward individuals with mental retardation. Responsive, positive attitudes toward people with mental retardation can be developed vicariously through well-chosen children's literature. Because of the inclusion of children with mental retardation into the general education classroom and an increased awareness of the importance of recognizing the diversity among us, more books that foster an understanding of people with mental retardation and emphasize each person as a unique individual are needed. The researcher analyzed the portrayal …

Control Of Type Iii Secretion In Yersinia Pestis By The Negative Regulator, Lcrg., Jyl S. Matson

Theses and Dissertations

Yersinia pestis, the causative agent of bubonic plague, downregulates the host immune response using a type III secretion system. The activity of the type III secretion system of Y. pestis is regulated by several proteins, including the negative secretion regulator, LcrG. LcrG has been proposed to block the secretion apparatus from the cytoplasmic face of the inner membrane under conditions that do not favor Yops secretion. LcrG has been demonstrated to interact and form a stable complex with a positive regulator of secretion, LcrV. Under secretion-permissive conditions, it is thought that increased levels of LcrV titrate LcrG away from the …

Philip Morris Faces "The Truth": A Rhetorical Analysis Of The Persuasiveness Of Two Teen-Targeted Anti-Smoking Advertising Campaigns, Marybeth Mcmurray

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the persuasiveness of anti-smoking television advertisements aimed at teens and produced by Philip Morris's Youth Smoking Prevention Program and the American Legacy Foundation's truth campaign. The advertisements are analyzed rhetorically using Kenneth Burke's dramatistic approach, supplemented by theory related to persuasive advertising, characteristics of at-risk adolescents, persuasive attack, and persuasive defense (apologia).

The analysis indicates that strong central themes present in both the Philip Morris and truth campaigns act as a means of rhetorical persuasion, but are not necessarily rhetoric designed to persuade adolescents not to smoke cigarettes. The truth campaign advertisements contain both strengths and weaknesses. …

Piano Letters., Scott Ronald Randall

Theses and Dissertations

In preparing this work of fiction, the author examined how characters used storytelling and acts of imagination to create their own lives. The two central characters of this work come to know one another largely through the sharing of memory and their shared imaginings, and their eventual union is a coming together of their individual stories. The text includes twelve short stories that may either be read as independent works or as a sustained whole.

Characterization And Role Of Lumican In Scleral Extracellular Matrix., Bobbie Ann Austin

Theses and Dissertations

Changes in scleral extracellular matrix, which is composed of proteins including glycoproteins, proteoglycans, and collagen, allow axial elongation of the eye resulting in myopia. Theoretically, changes in any scleral component could result in changes leading to increased axial length. The purpose of this study is to characterize and study the function of one protein found in scleral extracellular matrix, lumican.