Digital Commons Network^™

Shaping Swarms Through Coordinated Mediation, Shin-Young Jung

Theses and Dissertations

A swarm is a group of uninformed individuals that exhibit collective behaviors. Without any information about the external world, a swarm has limited ability to achieve complex goals. Prior work on human-swarm interaction methods allow a human to influence these uninformed individuals through either leadership or predation as informed agents that directly interact with humans. These methods of influence have two main limitations: (1) although leaders sustain influence over nominal agents for a long period of time, they tend to cause all collective structures to turn in to flocks (negating the benefit of other swarm formations) and (2) predators tend …

Going The Distance: Themes Of The Hero In Disney's Hercules, Amy Elizabeth Burchfield

Theses and Dissertations

Disney's Hercules is an apt modern reception of the ancient mythology of Herakles, acknowledging ancient and modern sources surrounding three types of classical hero: the archetypal hero, influenced by the ideas of Joseph Campbell; the Pan-Hellenic hero, distilled from ancient Greek exempla of heroism from epic and other genres of ancient literature; and the tragic hero, inspired by the heroic criteria presented in Aristotle's Poetics. By adapting these heroic types from their traditional ancient source myths, Disney's Hercules produces a new, contemporary definition of heroism—one informed by modern, Western family values. This adaptation renews the power of the myth of …

Aerodynamic Performance And Particle Image Velocimetery Of Piezo Actuated Biomimetic Manduca Sexta Engineered Wings Towards The Design And Application Of A Flapping Wing Flight Vehicle, Anthony M. Deluca

Theses and Dissertations

Considerable research and investigation has been conducted on the aerodynamic performance, and the predominate flow physics of the Manduca sexta size of biomimetically designed and fabricated wings as part of the AFIT FWMAV design project. Despite a burgeoning interest and research into the diverse field of flapping wing flight and biomimicry, the aerodynamics of flapping wing flight remains a nebulous field of science with considerable variance into the theoretical abstractions surrounding aerodynamic mechanisms responsible for aerial performance. Traditional FWMAV flight models assume a form of a quasi-steady approximation of wing aerodynamics based on an infinite wing element model (BEM). An …

The Promise: A Mythic-Archetypal And Gender-Oriented Analysis Of J.D. Salinger's "A Perfect Day For Bananafish", Warren Spratley

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is an analysis of J.D. Salinger’s “A Perfect Day for Bananafish” from both mythic-archetypal and gender-oriented perspectives. It looks specifically at the way a gender-oriented reading allows one to interpret “Bananafish” as a radical reassessment of Carl Jung’s ideas about the process of individuation, as well as Joseph Campbell’s conception of what he describes as the monomyth in his The Hero with a Thousand Faces. The reader is asked to look at how patriarchal values have greatly limited the development of these characters’ identities over time, and the complex archetypal and mythic implications of this limitation.

Habitat Selection And Nesting Ecology Of Snowy Plover In The Great Basin, Kristen Sue Ellis

Theses and Dissertations

Snowy plovers (Charadrius nivosus) are small, ground-nesting shorebirds that are a species of conservation concern throughout North America. Despite increased efforts to understand factors contributing to the decline of snowy plover, little is known about habitat selection and breeding ecology of snowy plover for the large population found in the Great Basin. We tested hypotheses concerning the occupancy and nesting success of snowy plover. First, we identified factors influencing snowy plover nest survival at Great Salt Lake, Utah. We hypothesized that snowy plover would demonstrate differences in nest survival rates across years due to differences in habitat characteristics, predator abundance, …

Spectral Analysis Of Nonstationary Heart Rate Of Neonates Receiving Therapeutic Hypothermia Treatment, Tareq Al-Shargabi

Theses and Dissertations

We studied Heart Rate Variability (HRV) evolution during therapeutic hypothermia in newborns with hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) using spectral analysis. We hypothesized that HRV measures are predictive of neurological outcome in babies with HIE. Non-stationarity in the data causes inaccurate quantification of the spectral power. A modification was proposed to power spectral analysis approach to mitigate the effect of non-stationarity. The modified and the standard approaches were applied to cardiac beat-to-beat intervals of newborns receiving hypothermia treatment. The performance of the approaches in distinguishing the RRi dynamics of two groups of newborns was assessed using area under the receiver operating …

Longitudinal Relations Between Dating Violence Victimization And Perpetration And Substance Use: The Moderating Role Of Gender And School Norms For Dating Violence, Katherine Taylor

Theses and Dissertations

Adolescent dating violence is commonly experienced by adolescents and is associated with a variety of negative outcomes. Stress and coping and social learning theories suggest that dating violence victimization may predict increased substance use and dating violence perpetration. However, few studies have assessed these relations over time, and existing studies have not assessed physical and psychological dating violence victimization separately nor focused on early adolescent populations. The current study addressed these gaps by examining longitudinal relations between physical and psychological dating violence victimization and substance use and physical and psychological dating violence perpetration among early adolescents. The extent to which …

Lapatinib And Sorafenib Kill Gbm Tumor Cells In A Greater Than Additive Manner, Seyedmehrad Tavallai

Theses and Dissertations

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most common and malignant brain tumor in adults, affecting thousands of people worldwide every year, with a life expectancy, post diagnosis of 12 months. Surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy together, result in an overall mean survival not exceeding 15 months. Targeted therapeutic agents sorafenib, an oral multi kinase inhibitor, and lapatinib, an epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) inhibitor, used in combination have been shown to kill GBM cells be through inhibition of major growth mediating signaling pathways that are frequently over expressed in gliomas, including mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/ protein kinase B (PI3K/AKT). …

The Prioritization Of Student Mental Health In The School Setting: Secondary Administrators' And Educators' Knowledge Of Adolescent Suicidal Risk Factors And Warning Signs, Chiquita Elliott

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the knowledge level of secondary building-level administrators and secondary teachers regarding adolescent suicidal risk factors and warning signs. Additionally, this study contributed a social mediation component, to explore whether educators believe that they have the potential to be change agents for youth in their school communities. Three hundred forty-three participants (318 teachers, 18 assistant principals and 7 principals) from the middle and high schools in a local public school district in the Mid-Atlantic Region of the United States completed a survey pertaining to information on adolescent suicide. Data analyses were conducted through detailed cross-tabulations and analysis of …

"Dae Scotsmen Dream O 'Lectric Leids?" Robert Crawford's Cyborg Scotland, Alexander Burke

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis applies a Cybernetic interpretation to a selection of poetry by the Scottish Informationist poet Robert Crawford, drawn mostly from two collections: A Scottish Assembly (1990) and Sharawaggi: Poems in Scots (1990). Crawford is contextualized by observing the poetic influences of Robert Burns, John Davidson, and Hugh MacDiarmid, as well as the philosophical influence of George Elder Davie’s The Democratic Intellect. This paper argues that, in response to the Two Cultures hypothesis put forth by C. P. Snow and the widely-held belief that Scotland is irrevocably fractured, the shifting boundaries of the many disparate Scottish cultures are mediated by …

Regularization Methods For Predicting An Ordinal Response Using Longitudinal High-Dimensional Genomic Data, Jiayi Hou

Theses and Dissertations

Ordinal scales are commonly used to measure health status and disease related outcomes in hospital settings as well as in translational medical research. Notable examples include cancer staging, which is a five-category ordinal scale indicating tumor size, node involvement, and likelihood of metastasizing. Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), which gives a reliable and objective assessment of conscious status of a patient, is an ordinal scaled measure. In addition, repeated measurements are common in clinical practice for tracking and monitoring the progression of complex diseases. Classical ordinal modeling methods based on the likelihood approach have contributed to the analysis of data in …

Sirt6 And Premature Aging Of Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome Fibroblasts., Helal Endisha

Theses and Dissertations

The genetic disease Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome (HGPS) arises from a de novo single nucleotide mutation (1824CàT) in the LMNA gene. As a result, the mutated lamin A protein (progerin) remains farnesylated and permanently attached to the nuclear membrane. Progerin accumulates and deforms the nuclear membrane leading to an array of cellular abnormalities driving the cells to enter a state of permanent cell-cycle arrest early on in replicative age i.e. premature cellular senescence. Cellular senescence has been extensively studied as one of the contributing factors to aging in HGPS patients and other age-related diseases. There has also been evidence to show …

Variation And Modulation Of Micrornas In Prostate Cancer And Biological Fluids, Sarah Seashols

Theses and Dissertations

Prostate cancer is the second-most diagnosed and fatal carcinoma for males in the United States, and better diagnostic markers and potential therapies are needed. microRNAs are small, single-stranded RNA molecules that affect protein expression at the translational level, and dysregulation can dramatically affect cell metabolism. Comparison of 736 microRNA expression levels between the poorly metastatic SV40T immortalized prostate epithelial cell line P69 to its highly tumorigenic and metastatic subline M12 identified 231 miRs that were overexpressed and 150 miRs that showed loss of expression in the M12 cell line. Further evaluation of fourteen identified miRs was accomplished using other prostate …

Analysis Of Plasminogen Binding To Treponema Denticola, A Key Periopathogen, Brittney Tegels

Theses and Dissertations

Periodontitis is a chronic inflammatory disease that affects over 116 million adults in the United States. A shift in the normal microflora occurs as periodontal disease develops resulting in a larger number of Gram-negative anaerobes and spirochetes. An increase in the oral spirochete, Treponema denticola, is highly correlated with periodontal disease progression and severity. The ability of this periopathogen to thrive in the subgingival crevice is dependent on complement evasion mechanisms. Earlier analyses demonstrated that the primary mechanism of T. denticola serum resistance is binding of the human complement regulatory protein, Factor H (FH), to the factor H-binding protein (FhbB). …

Design Of Engineered Biomaterial Architectures Through Natural Silk Proteins, Nicholas Kurland

Theses and Dissertations

Silk proteins have provided a source of unique and versatile building blocks in the fabrication of biomedical devices for addressing a range of applications. Critical to advancing this field is the ability to establish an understanding of these proteins in their native and engineered states as well as in developing scalable processing strategies, which can fully exploit or enhance the stability, structure, and functionality of the two constituent proteins, silk fibroin and sericin. The research outlined in this dissertation focuses on the evolution in architecture and capability of silks, to effectively position a functionally-diverse, renewable class of silk materials within …

Identification Of Human Pgc-1Α-B Isoforms Using A Novel Pgc-1Α-B Specific Antibody, Shannon Hedrick

Theses and Dissertations

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma coactivator 1-alpha (PGC-1α) is known as the master regulator of mitochondrial biogenesis. PGC-1α holds this role by acting as a transcriptional coactivator for an array of transcription factors and nuclear hormone receptors, such as NRF-1/2 and ERRα/γ, whose downstream targets function in mitochondrial biogenesis and oxidative phosphorylation. PGC-1α is regulated both at the transcriptional and post-translational level in several signaling pathways, including p38 MAPK and AMPK. This regulation affects which transcription factor binding events can occur in a given tissue, and thus affects regulation of PGC-1α target genes. PGC-1α is downregulated in many neurodegenerative disorders as …

Citizens Without A Nation: The Construction Of Haitian Illegality And Deportability In The Dominican Republic, Sasha Miranda

Theses and Dissertations

Migrant "illegality" has increasingly become a popular topic in political debates around the world, but illegal populations are not random or self-generating, they are created and patterned (DeGenova 2002:422). Through the recent enforcement of new and existing immigration laws, the Dominican State has begun to move large populations of Haitian immigrants and their descendants into irregular or "illegal" immigration status.

A historical analysis of the relationship between the Dominican State and Haitian immigrants presents a paradox: the Dominican economy has become increasingly dependent on Haitian migrant labor, yet the Dominican State has persistently worked to force Haitians and their descendants …

Beta 2 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor Contributions To Anxiety-Like Behavior, Shawn Anderson

Theses and Dissertations

Nicotine is a major psychoactive ingredient in tobacco that is thought to promote smoking behavior via nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) in the brain. Given reports that people smoke to relieve anxiety and that anxiety precipitates relapse, the overarching goal of this dissertation research is to assess beta 2 subunit containing nAChR (beta2*nAChR) contributions to anxiety-like behavior. Nicotine’s activity at beta2*nAChRs is concentration-dependent, with high concentrations facilitating activation followed by rapid desensitization and low concentrations preferentially desensitizing beta2*nAChRs; hence, activation or inhibition of beta2*nAChRs may support smoking behavior. Rodent studies reveal that nicotine affects anxiety-like behavior dose-dependently: low doses promote anxiolysis- …

A Boot Camp Approach To Remediating Interdental /S/ In A School-Aged Child, Melanie Ellen Peris

Theses and Dissertations

The relationship between speech articulation therapy dose (frequency, intensity, duration) and treatment outcomes are poorly understood. Identifying optimal therapy doses for specific articulation disorders is essential to providing efficient clinical care. Recent research indicates that intensive speech therapy doses-known as boot camps-may promote rapid improvement and generalization for certain speech disorders. Therefore the present investigation examined the effects of a boot camp speech therapy approach to remediate interdental /s/ production in an 8-year-old male. The boot camp included two days of speech therapy involving visual, tactile, and auditory feedback approaches. Therapy was administered 5.5 hours per day across morning and …

“The Flow Of Blood In Nature” Franz Marc’S Animal Theory, Morgan Rinehart

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis argues for a coherent theory of the animal in the written and visual works of the German Expressionist painter, Franz Marc. By contextualizing Marc’s animal theory within the history of animal studies, this thesis will analyze how Marc’s animal theory corresponds with several central concepts within this field. One of these concepts—a theory of animal death—is central to the artist’s greater theory of the animal and to the analysis this thesis provides. In examining Marc’s theory of animal death, the following work will propose that the artist’s theory of animal spirituality is his greatest legacy within the field …

Novel Liposomes For Targeted Delivery Of Drugs And Plasmids, Marjan Javadi

Theses and Dissertations

People receiving chemotherapy not only suffer from side effects of therapeutics but also must buy expensive drugs. Targeted drug and gene delivery directed to specific tumor-cells is one way to reduce the side effect of drugs and use less amount of therapeutics. In this research, two novel liposomal nanocarriers were developed. This nanocarrier, called an eLiposome, is basically one or more emulsion droplets inside a liposome. Emulsion droplets are made of perfluorocarbons which usually have a high vapor pressure. Calcein (as a model drug) and Paclitaxel were used to demonstrate drug delivery, and plasmids and siRNA were used to exemplify …

Alcohol And Medication Use In Community-Dwelling Older Adults: Understanding The Effect Of Alcohol And Central Nervous System-Acting Medications On The Risk For Falls, Maitreyee Mohanty

Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: Aging, comorbid conditions, and use of medications render older adults more susceptible to alcohol-disease or alcohol-drug interactions that may lead to harmful outcomes. In this dissertation project the risk profile of alcohol and medications use among older adults was investigated. Considering the rise in CNS-acting medication use and the adverse effect profile linked to CNS-acting medications, it was also of interest to find if older adults were at risk of falling due to interactions between alcohol and CNS-acting medication. Objectives: The objectives were as follows: 1) to determine the prevalence, pattern and factors associated with at-risk drinking, 2) to …

Accidental Octopus, Elizabeth Patterson

Theses and Dissertations

I head to the ocean for inspiration. Diving deep, the diverse organic shapes and fluidity of the flora and fauna inspire me to create modular pieces that incorporate intricate line work. This repetitive line and patterning gives me peace and helps me meditate. This self-exploration has opened up a stimulating world that pushes me to produce prints and silver jewelry that are individual and introspective. I have learned that the journey has become the aspiration and the production, a gift.

The Effect Of Media Selection On The Membrane Characteristics And Fatty Acid Composition Of Staphylococcus Aureus, Seth Russell Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

The cellular membrane is a vital structure to a microorganism and impacts important aspects of environmental regulation and growth. The physical structure of cellular membranes plays a key role in bacterial growth at low temperatures, membrane permeability and susceptibility to membrane active molecules as well as broader aspects of bacterial physiology and pathogenesis. Mueller Hinton medium is the required medium for antimicrobial susceptibility testing in the US, but there are many other types of media used in staphylococcal research. Different media vary in their nutrient compositions, and the effect of media composition on bacterial physiology is incompletely understood. The aim …

High Throughput Data Framework Based Characterization And Evaluations Of Thermobifida Fusca For Industrial Applications, Niti Vanee

Theses and Dissertations

Cellulolytic organisms are being heavily studied for the production of biofuels, given that lignocellulosic biomass would be a cheap, abundant, and renewable starting material for chemical production. A challenge with cellulolytic microorganisms is that they are typically poorly characterized and often difficult to genetically manipulate. Our group focuses characterization and engineering of a thermophilic aerobic, cellulolytic actinobacterium, Thermobifida fusca. The wider range of optimal temperature and pH for the growth condition, besides the secretion of several group of cellulases, have made this microbe a potentially efficient host system for industrially application. After the development of first ever successful genetic manipulation …

Zuzu's Petals, Jeffrey James Jarot

Theses and Dissertations

Zuzu's Petals relates the travails of Jules and Julie, a couple whose marriage is in the process of breaking apart. Jules has a "fanboyish" obsession with the 1946 Frank Capra film "It's a Wonderful Life." Furthermore, he is fixated on his own past, and his eccentric behavior has caused his disenchanted wife to seek romantic and emotional solace in David, an old flame from high school. Their child, Zuzu, who was named at Jules' insistence after a key character in the Capra film, has herself sensed that something is amiss in her parents' dealings with each other. The story's narrative …

Trajectory Generation And Optimization For Experimental Investigation Of Flapping Flight, Michael Schnebly Wilcox

Theses and Dissertations

Though still in relative infancy, the field of flapping flight has potential to have a far-reaching impact on human life. Nature presents a myriad of examples of successful uses of this locomotion. Human efforts in flapping flight have seen substantial improvement in recent times. Wing kinematics are a key aspect of this study. This study summarizes previous wing trajectory generators and presents a new trajectory generation method built upon previous methods. This includes a novel means of commanding unequal half-stroke durations subject to robotic trajectory continuity requirements. Additionally, previous optimization methods are improved upon. Experimental optimization is performed using the …

Behavioral And Genomic Characterization Of Scheduled Ethanol Deprivation, Jonathan Warner

Theses and Dissertations

Alcoholism is a persistent substance abuse disorder that is associated with negative health, social, and economic outcomes. Treatment strategies for alcohol use disorders are limited, and only three drugs have been approved by the FDA for treatment. Although behavioral therapy and drug combination strategies improve abstinence outcomes, the majority of those in treatment will not achieve long-term abstinence. Therefore, better treatment strategies are needed. While much progress has been made toward understanding the neurobiology of alcoholism, this knowledge has not been effectively translated into treatment strategies. Animal models of alcohol drinking have been crucial to this research effort, but until …

Tight Void, Brooke Burns

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is a memoir that draws on the life experience of two promiscuous women, Brooke and Karen. Both characters come from upper-middle class backgrounds, have extremely similar family lives, and take two very different paths in both their education and sexual behavior. While the women both retain their strong friendship throughout the narrative, eventually, Karen, and her decision to become a prostitute, takes its toll. Though they remain supportive of one another, Karen's lifestyle of sex, drugs, and partying begin to create a disconnect between them. This thesis sheds light on the true nature of female promiscuity: its relation …

Improving The Efficiency Of Fall Applied N With Cover Crops, Corey Lacey

Theses and Dissertations

Nitrate loss studies in Midwestern tile-drained fields have found that fall applied nitrogen (N) resulted in elevated nitrate concentrations in tile water during both the corn and soybean year of a 2 year rotation. The effectiveness of cover crops to reduce nitrate leaching when N is spring applied has been well demonstrated, however there is a dearth of knowledge on the ability of cover crops to reduce nitrate leaching in a system where N is fall applied. Thus, the objectives of this research were to (i) investigate the efficacy of winter cover crops to reduce nitrate leaching from fall applied …