Digital Commons Network^™

Development Of A Health Management Information System For The Mountain Gorilla (Gorilla Beringei), Richard Brian Minnis

Theses and Dissertations

The Mountain Gorillas of Central Africa are one of the most highly endangered species in the world, with only 740 individuals surviving. One of the greatest threats to this species is disease. Health of wildlife is continually garnering more attention in the public arena due to recent outbreaks of diseases such as West Nile and High Pathogenic Avian Influenza. However, no system currently exists to facilitate the management and analysis of wildlife health data. The research conducted herein was the development and testing of a health information monitoring system for the mountain gorillas entitled Internet-supported Management Program to Assist Conservation …

Effectiveness Of Postharvest Sanitation Treatments On Microbial Load Of Blueberries, Wei-Chun Chen

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the quality and microbial load of blueberries at different maturity stages, to develop the effective microbial recovery method and to compare sanitation postharvest treatments on microbial counts of blueberries. The soluble solids and the sugar to acid ratio increased, while pH and TA decreased with maturity. Ripe berries had lower yeast and mold counts (YMC) at other maturity stages, but there were no differences on aerobic plate counts (APC). The medium pH was lower for stomaching and blending than hand massaged samples. This leads to higher recovery of microorganisms by massaging. Sodium …

Influence Of Food-Grade Ingredients On Offlavor Compounds In Catfish Fillets, Sovann Kin

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to screen the effect of some food-grade ingredients on the off-odors caused by geosmin and 2-methylisoborneol (MIB) compounds in catfish fillets by sensory evaluation. The study revealed that geosmin and MIB odor intensity were reduced to different degrees when fillets were dipped in lime flavor (94% and 67%, respectively), 0.5% acetic acid (AA) (70% and 16%, respectively), hardwood liquid smoke (98% and 86%, respectively), or hickory liquid smoke (98% and 100% respectively) in cooked products. A 0.5% AA proved to be effective in decreasing odor intensity of geosmin (70%) in cooked products, whereas lime …

Innovative Scintillating Optical Fibers For Detecting/Monitoring Gamma Radiation, Ashwini Jayaprakash

Theses and Dissertations

A scintillating optical fiber sensor of this work consists of a scintillating optical fiber, connected to a photomultiplier tube (PMT) via a conventional silica optical fiber. When a gamma ray impinges on the scintillating optical fiber, photons are generated inside the fiber. The photons are trapped inside the fiber and guided through the PMT. The PMT output signal is acquired by a computer. Two types of scintillating optical fibers sensors were developed for gamma ray detection. The first one is a silica optical fiber doped with an inorganic scintillating agent. The second one is a liquid core waveguide optical fiber …

Molecular-Genetic And Structural Analyses Of The Nifhdkx Proteins Of The Nitrogenase System, Surobhi Lahiri

Theses and Dissertations

The nitrogenase enzyme is the biochemical machiner responsible for the conversion of the largely unavailable nitrogen to the easily assimilable ammonia for living organisms by the process termed as biological nitrogen fixation (BNF). This study was focused on understanding the various structural and functional aspects of the nitrogenase enzyme related to maturation and assembly of the FeMo-cofactor (FeMoco) metallocluster of the MoFe protein (the site for final substrate reduction), development of a dimeric MoFe protein and the structural homology of nitrogenase with other metalloenzymes. This research was specifically directed towards the NifHDKX proteins in which the nifHDK genes are the …

Bacterial Source Tracking Of A Watershed Impacted By Cattle Pastures, Celina Phelps

Theses and Dissertations

Pathogenic microorganisms introduced by cattle may be transported to distant locations via watershed runoff. Escherichia coli, Enterococcus spp., and Streptococcus spp. are a few species present in runoff from land impacted by humans, cattle, and wildlife. Initial data reveals that E. coli concentrations in water are greater in areas impacted by cattle than by humans. And, wildlife contributes greater concentration fluctuations than either humans or cattle. When cattle are removed from a pasture, the bacterial concentrations rapidly decrease; however, slight variations in cattle herd size do not appear to significantly influence these counts. Amplified fragment length polymorphisms (AFLP) and repeated-sequence …

An Empirical Study Of Organizational Ubiquitous Computing Technology Adoption: The Case Of Radio Frequency Identification (Rfid) In The Healthcare Industry, Cheon-Pyo Lee

Theses and Dissertations

Advances in wireless networking and the Internet move us toward ubiquitous and embedded computing. Ubiquitous and embedded computing enhances computer use by making computers available throughout the physical environment while making them effectively invisible to the user. In the ubiquitous and embedded computing era, computers in the traditional sense gradually fade, and information mediated by computers is available anywhere and anytime through devices that are embedded in the environment. Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is one of the key technologies of the ubiquitous and embedded computing era. RFID is a technology used to identify, track, and trace a person or object …

Sds-Page And Western Blotting Analyses Of Internalin A In Listeria Monocytogenes And Listeria Spp, Bang-Yuan Chen

Theses and Dissertations

Attachment strength of Listeria spp. and their InlA expression was assessed. Listeria monocytogenes 19111 exhibited the strongest attachment strength with L. monocytogenes 19115, L. grayi, L. innocua, and L. monocytogenes 7644 being the weakest. InlA expression was not detected in silver stained SDS gels but was detected in Western blotting images. Internalin A was only detected in protein extracts of L. monocytogenes 19111 and 7644 with band intensities of 50.1 and 2.5 pixels, respectively. Greater InlA expression was correlated with higher attachment strength in L. monocytogenes 19111. Listeria monocytogenes 19115 did not express InlA but it had a stronger attachment …

Functional Role Of Recombinant Cysteine Protease On Spodoptera Frugiperda Peritrophic Matrix, Srinidi Mohan

Theses and Dissertations

Fall armyworm larvae (FAW), which are serious pests in the southern United States, show retarded growth when they feed on insect-resistant maize inbreds Mp704 and Mp708. These maize genotypes are not only resistant to FAW, but to a number of other lepidopteran pests. In these genotypes, a unique, extracellular, 33-KDa cysteine protease (Mir1-CP) rapidly accumulates in the whorl in response to insect feeding. Initial morphological studies on larvae feeding on resistant maize plants over-expressing the cysteine protease showed severe damage in insect?s first line of defense, the peritrophic matrix (PM). But it is not known whether the cysteine protease has …

Impact Of Foliar Fungicides On Yield And Net Returns In Soybeans, Benjamin L. Spinks

Theses and Dissertations

Field studies were conducted in 2003, 2004, and 2005 in the Mississippi delta at 12 locations across common production practices to evaluate the impact of 12 single applications of fungicides at the R3 and R5 growth stage on soybean yield, seed quality, and net returns. Averaged across locations, azoxystrobin alone and mixed with other fungicides increased yields 161 to 343 kg/ha compared to the nontreated control. Fungicide applications made at R3-R4 were more efficacious and resulted in larger yield increases than applications made at R5-R6. Plots treated at the R3-R4 growth stage with 0.11kg ai/ha azoxystrobin alone or in combination …

Technique And Performance Level Comparisons Of Male And Female Hammer Throwers, Suzanne M. Konz

Theses and Dissertations

The aim of this study was two-fold: 1) what the hammer throwing technique differences between sexes are and 2) what technique parameters help determine throw distance. The performances of the top 16 male and female throwers at the 2003 World Athletic Final and the top 13 male and female throwers from the 2003 USA Track and Field Nationals were examined. Video was captured using three Canon 60 Hz cameras. The best throws of each athlete were digitized and analyzed using the Peak Motus 8.2 motion analysis system. T-tests revealed that athlete mass, athlete height, velocity at release, timing components, and …

Disaster Communication Networks: A Case Study Of The Thai Red Cross And Their Disaster Communication Response To The Asian Tsunami, Tami J. Matthews

Theses and Dissertations

Disaster victims and vulnerable populations are audiences that communications professionals and scholars have ignored. Public relation practices dominate current disaster communication policy. This study examines the disaster communication network, including policy and practice, of the Thai Red Cross, before, during, and after the Asian tsunami. Disaster communication(s) is defined as the sharing and exchange of information with the victims immediately affected by a disaster. This definition focuses specifically on the vulnerable audience and allows response efforts to emerge from multiple disciplines. Focusing response efforts on victims' assessed needs and abilities allows for a multi-disciplinary approach to mitigate further suffering. The …

Expression And Function Of Alpha3 And Beta2 Neuronal Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor Subunits In Hek-293 Cells, Nathan W. Steinhafel

Theses and Dissertations

Single-cell real-time quantitative RT-PCR was used to characterize the mRNA expression of rat neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) subunits α3 and β2 in CA1 hippocampus stratum radiatum and stratum oriens interneurons. α3β2 co-expression was detected in 43% of interneurons analyzed. The nAChR subtype α3β2 was transiently expressed in cells derived from the human embryonic kidney cell line 293 at mRNA levels found in the CA1. The functional properties of α3β2 in HEK-293 cells were characterized by whole-cell patch clamping using acetylcholine (ACh) as an agonist. The kinetics of α3β2 channels were further analyzed by altering the level of α3 DNA …

Financial Analysis And Fiscal Viability Of Secondary Schools In Mukono District, Uganda, Janet Jeffery Tanner

Theses and Dissertations

Within the worldwide business community, many analysis tools and techniques have evolved to assist in the evaluation and encouragement of financial health and fiscal viability. However, in the educational community, such analysis is uncommon. It has long been argued that educational institutions bear little resemblance to, and should not be treated like, businesses. This research identifies an educational environment where educational institutions are, indeed, businesses, and may greatly benefit from the use of business analyses. The worldwide effort of Education for All (EFA) has focused on primary education, particularly in less developed countries (LDCs). In Sub-Saharan Africa, Uganda increased its …

An Analysis Of The Accounting Methods Used By Builders Producing Twenty-Five Or Fewer Homes Per Year, David Andrus

Theses and Dissertations

Accounting plays a crucial role in the success of any business, but it is particularly vital in the construction industry, a complex field that typically requires the coordination of multiple subcontractors and multiple jobs in any given year. Although small-volume home builders make up 70 percent of the membership of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), a trade association of the home building industry, little is known about the accounting practices of these builders. This thesis undertook to study the accounting practices of small-volume home builders. Small-volume home builders were defined as those producing 25 homes or fewer in …

Shape Matching, Relevance Feedback, And Indexing With Application To Spine X-Ray Image Retrieval, Xiaoqian Xu

Theses and Dissertations

The National Library of Medicine (NLM), an institute in the National Institutes of Health (NIH), maintains a collection of 17,000 digitized spine X-ray images obtained from the second National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES II). Research effort has been devoted to develop a web-accessible retrieval system that allows retrieval of images from the NHANES II database on relevant and frequently found pathologies. A comprehensive and successful image retrieval system requires effective image representation and matching methods, relevance feedback algorithms to incorporate user opinions, and efficient indexing schemes for fast access to image databases. This dissertation studies and develops approaches …

Impact Of Wastewater Reuse In Burlington County On Surface Water Quality And Adjacent Wetlands, Crystal L. Mattson

Theses and Dissertations

This study was conducted to assess potential ecological impacts from application of treated wastewater effluent. Indian Springs Golf Course is currently irrigated with reclaimed wastewater. Grab water samples were collected from three (3) ponds located on the golf course over the course of a year and were analyzed for nitrate-nitrogen, total phosphorus, organics, and bacteria. A second golf course, Medford Lakes Country Club is currently irrigated with groundwater. Grab water samples were collected from both locations and analyzed for nutrients and bacteria for comparison purposes.

Results of sample analyses indicate that detriment to the quality of surface water at the …

Forage Adaptability Trials For Forage And Seed Production In Bolivia; Effect Of 5 Herbicides On 7 Native Utah Forbs, Joshua C. Voss

Theses and Dissertations

The harsh environmental and poor economic conditions of the Bolivian Altiplano require intervention to assist many of those that live there to become economically self-sufficient. We attempted to find introduced dry season reserve forage grasses that could produce enough biomass to be useful as feed for livestock, and that could also produce enough seed to distribute to farmers. While some of the grasses produced reasonable amounts of biomass, none produced seed in quantities that would be even close to being economically viable. The most likely cause of this is that the timing of resources that the grasses need to flower …

Effects Of Telephone Weight Loss Coaching On Body Composition In Adults: A Randomized Controlled Study, Amy Jensen Cook

Theses and Dissertations

Objective: To determine the extent to which coaching over the telephone is an effective method in promoting the loss of body weight and body fat percentage. Research Methods and Procedures: Over a period of four months, in a randomized, double blind, placebo-controlled study, 120 overweight and obese (BMI 25-35 kg/m²) adults either received telephone coaching or no coaching. In addition, each participant was randomly assigned to take a supplement or placebo daily. Body weight and body fat percentage were measured at baseline, two months, and four months. Body weight was measured on an electronic scale and body fat percentage was …

Using Social Network Analysis To Investigate Potential Bias In Editorial Peer Review In Core Journals Of Comparative/International Education, Biao Cheng

Theses and Dissertations

This study explores potential bias in the editorial peer-review system within the context of the field of comparative and international education. Assuming the role as “Guardian of Science” and “social status judge” (Zuckerman & Merton, 1971), peer-review, the quality control system of science, directly affects the growth of science, scientists' academic career and their institutions. The very basic tenet of the peer review system is its assumed objectivity. Bias in editorial peer review process, however, is inevitable. The constitution of the blind peer review mechanism is itself a simply undeniable acknowledgement of that fact. Therefore, this study investigated potential peer-review …

Making The Connection: Engaging The Small Business Administration And Government Minority Programs To Develop An Electrical Contracting Business Model For Native American Entrepreneurs, Eric S. Bruguier

Theses and Dissertations

Native American entrepreneurs experience numerous obstacles when attempting to establish profitable businesses. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to explore how the Small Business Administration can assist Native American entrepreneurs with the minority programs that are established under the Small Business Act. More specifically, the study addresses how to utilize the Small Business Administration and government minority programs to develop a business model for Native American entrepreneurs who intend to establish electrical contracting businesses

Contingency Management Techniques And Smoking Cessation In College Students, Laurie Athey

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine smoking cessation using different criteria for delivery of monetary reinforcement for college students from Rowan University, Glassboro, NJ. Participants participated in a 4 week study using a single subject reversal design (ABAC) in which baseline phases were alternated with either fixed criterion or shaping using an escalating schedule of reinforcement. The order of administration of intervention phases was determined randomly. Each intervention phase lasted 5 days (Monday-Friday). Results showed that contingent reinforcement for reduced carbon monoxide levels was effective in reducing smoking. However, additional studies need to be completed for longer periods …

The Experience Of Transition By Baccalaureate Nursing Graduates, Linda R. Pettersen

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to investigate the transition experience of new baccalaureate-prepared graduates entering nursing practice as registered nurses. Participants were a convenience sample of six graduates from a midwestem university who were employed as registered nurses from eight to twelve months in acute care nursing practice. Transition theory was used as a guide in designing interview questions. Participants were interviewed and the audio-recorded interviews were transcribed and then analyzed for codes, categories, and themes.

Four themes emerged from analysis of the data. Theme One: Lack of experience contributes to self-doubt for the new graduate nurse. Although …

Effects Of Aspartame Consumption On Cognitive Function, Fang Ye

Theses and Dissertations

The FDA estimates that 35% of Americans regularly consume aspartame, an artificial sweetener used in diet drinks and other sugar-free food items. Some anecdotal reports indicate the substance has been associated with health, behavioral, and cognitive concerns. The FDA and other regulatory agencies indicate it is safe for use up to 50mg/kg/day. They further advise individuals with metabolic phenylalanine disorders not to consume this product. This conflicting advice has caused confusion for consumers and practioners. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the effects of aspartame consumption on cognitive functioning of healthy adults.

Orem's theory of Self-Care guided …

Principal Time Commitment And Job Satisfaction Before And After An Executive Coaching Workshop, Thomas Matthew Gravel

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate time commitment and job satisfaction of principals before and after an executive coaching workshop. Principals on average work 50-70 hours per week and the demands being placed on principals is ever increasing. The result has been fewer qualified individuals applying for principal positions across the country and the burnout of those who are in the position.

Data were collected from K-12 principals by surveying those who attended one of four workshops titled, “How to Work Less, Play More, and Still Get the Job Done in a Normal School Week: Assuming Your Proper …

Time Of Day, Attention, Sleep Quality, And Driving Experience: Possible Moderators Of Age-Related Differences In Driving Performance, Carol L. Bennett

Theses and Dissertations

Auto crashes are more likely in the afternoon, and older adults are involved in more crashes later in the day as compared to earlier in the day. Factors that may influence older adult’s driving included visual spatial attention and sleep quality. In addition, circadian preference may also influence driving. The purpose of this study was to evaluate these factors in older adults. This study included younger adults (N= 41, M= 21.6 years) and older adults (N= 40, M= 65.5 years) who were tested between 8 and 10 a.m. or between 3 and 5 p.m. Participants were tested on a computerized …

The Experiences Of Heterosexual Women Married To Gay Or Bisexual Men, Matt Pearcey

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to better understand the experiences of heterosexual women who were married to gay or bisexual men. This survey looked at what led these women to marry their husbands, how they fell after they found out about their husband's newly identified sexual orientation, and how they coped with this revelation.

A mixed-method approach was taken in this study with 27 closed-ended questions. Three of the questions were open ended. This 30-question surv ey was utilized in order to gather data on each subject's experience of coping with their husband or partner’s coming out process. It …

Influential Factors Affecting The Career Success Of Professional Northern Plains Native American Males: A Qualitative Study, Adam J. Guilmino

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to better understand successful vocational experiences among Northern Plains Native American males. Most studies completed up to this point have approached the issue of Native American career exploration from a problem-based perspective. This study used a Consensual Qualitative Research (CQR) methodology to examine the experiences of Native Americans who have been nominated by their tribal community as career successful members of their community.

Eight male members of two North Dakota Native American tribes were interviewed using semi-structured qualitative interview protocol. Interviews were transcribed and analyzed for domains and categories. Eight domains emerged from the …

Hb1245: A Case Study Of The Process That Rescinded Nd's Nursing Education Requirements, Wanda Fisher Rose

Theses and Dissertations

A case study approach was used to examine House Bill1245 (HB1245, 2003) introduced by the ND Nurses Association (NDNA) in the 2003 58th ND Legislative Session. The purpose of this study was to trace the events and debates that rescinded the nursing education for entry-into-practice that existed since 1987. The study was designed to answer the following questions: (a) What events prompted the introduction of House Bill1245? (b) Who were the key actors during the legislative process? (c) What was the understanding ofHB1245 by nurses? (d) What factors influenced the outcome of HB1245? and, (e) Why did NDNA introduce HB1245? …

Patterns Of Relationship Satisfaction And Sexual Behavior As A Function Of Pornography Use Among College Men, Joel David Deloy

Theses and Dissertations

Recent research on sexually explicit materials (SEM), or pornography, has expanded from a focus on sexual violence, and aggression, towards the examination of the influence of SEM on other relationship factors. Available information on how males involved in a romantic relationship use SEM has been limited, and the effect of SEM use on relationship satisfaction and sexual behavior is not well understood. This study examined 245 college men who completed self-report measures of relationship satisfaction, core relationship variables (autonomy, affection, conflict resolution, intimacy, and equality) and SEM use patterns. All participants were in significant romantic relationships of at least three …