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Tv Dads: A Grounded Theory Analysis Of Viewer Perceptions Of Fathers In Television Dramas, Katherine Ann Barboza Jul 2018

Tv Dads: A Grounded Theory Analysis Of Viewer Perceptions Of Fathers In Television Dramas, Katherine Ann Barboza

Theses and Dissertations

The present study aims to identify what viewer perceptions individuals have regarding fathers in television dramas. Framed through uses and gratifications theory and executed through the grounded theory method, 12 participants were interviewed. After analysis, findings revealed that although participants say that general perceptions of fathers on TV are negative, they have seen personally the diversity and variety of father portrayals in their favorite television dramas. Additionally, the realism of the TV dramas and characters influence the relatability to both the father figures and other characters in the show. This relatability, in turn, influences the likeability and loyalty to the …

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A Content Analysis Of Relationships And Intimacy In Teen Dramas On Television, Sara Valoise Lamb Jul 2018

A Content Analysis Of Relationships And Intimacy In Teen Dramas On Television, Sara Valoise Lamb

Theses and Dissertations

Television programs continue to play a significant role in a teenager's life as they become involved in dating relationships. Adolescence is a pivotal period of life. Teenagers' usage of media, especially television, provides a source of norms and scripts of what a relationship looks like. The portrayals of sexual content in teen programs has become a source of sexual information instead of parents and peers. Many parents are unaware of the sexual content teen programs deliver to their audiences. This study analyzes how teen dramas create expectations through their portrayal of relationships and intimacy on television. Five teen television programs …

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The Relationship Between Experiential Avoidance And Physiological Reactivity, Brodrick Thomas Brown Jul 2018

The Relationship Between Experiential Avoidance And Physiological Reactivity, Brodrick Thomas Brown

Theses and Dissertations

Due to the universal nature of stress, and its impact on physical health, it is important to understand how it is related to other psychological variables. The current study was undertaken in order to investigate whether an individual's cardiovascular reactivity to stress is impacted by their level of experiential avoidance, as measured by the Acceptance and Action Questionnaire (AAQ-II). Individuals who are experientially avoidant are more likely to attempt to escape or prevent certain experiences and make effort to change them or avoid the contexts in which they occur. Previous research has indicated that experiential avoidance is related to some …

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The Ability Of Novel Phage To Infect Virulent Bacillus Anthracis Isolates, Hyrum Smith Shumway Jul 2018

The Ability Of Novel Phage To Infect Virulent Bacillus Anthracis Isolates, Hyrum Smith Shumway

Theses and Dissertations

Bacillus anthracis is a soil dwelling microbe with pronounced pathogenic potential. Historically, anthrax has infected livestock and man. In the modern-age, anthrax is a bioterrorism concern with major incidents every decade. While the threat of large scale attacks is currently viewed as unlikely, the threat is consistent and constant. Current methods to defend against such an attack focus on antibiotics and containment of public panic. Antibiotic resistance, while not currently an issue for anthrax, could easily become so with genetically engineered weaponized strains created by rogue states or independent actors. This project evolved from collaborations between the Grose lab and …

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Strontium Isotopes-A Tracer For Dust And Flow Processes In An Alpine Catchment, Colin Andrus Hale Jul 2018

Strontium Isotopes-A Tracer For Dust And Flow Processes In An Alpine Catchment, Colin Andrus Hale

Theses and Dissertations

Stream chemistry changes in response to snowmelt, but does not typically reflect thechemistry of the snowpack. This suggests that flow processes between snowmelt and streamsystem, such as interactions with the soil and bedrock, have an important control on waterchemistry and highlight the complex flow pathways from the snowpack to stream. To investigateflow processes in the upper Provo River watershed, northern Utah, we sampled three sites on theriver ~20 times per year during 2016 and 2017. The sites, from highest elevations to lowest wereSoapstone, Woodland, and Hailstone, corresponding to locations of active stream gauges. Toidentify possible water sources to the stream …

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The Clinical Significance Of Hprt As A Diagnostic And Therapeutic Biomarker For Hematological And Solid Malignancies, Michelle Hannah Townsend Jul 2018

The Clinical Significance Of Hprt As A Diagnostic And Therapeutic Biomarker For Hematological And Solid Malignancies, Michelle Hannah Townsend

Theses and Dissertations

An estimated 1,735,350 new cancer diagnosis and 609,640 cancer related deaths are predicted to occur in the United States in 2018. To improve patient prognosis, biomarkers are needed to identify cancer in early stages. When diagnosed at an early stage, cancer is more likely to respond to treatments and patients have a higher survival rate. Consequently, there is an ever-present need to identify biomarkers that can aid in the detection of cancer. Additionally, there is a paradigm shift in the field of cancer treatment towards immunotherapy. Traditional cancer treatments include chemotherapy, radiation, and hormone therapy and are not cancer-specific, which …

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Illegitimate Tasks And Employee Silence: A Moderated Mediation Model, Timothy A. Davis Jul 2018

Illegitimate Tasks And Employee Silence: A Moderated Mediation Model, Timothy A. Davis

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the relationship between illegitimate tasks and employee silence and examined the mediating role of job engagement and the moderating effect of agreeableness and conscientiousness. Grounded in justice theory, stress research, and the engagement literature, this study found illegitimate tasks to positively predict employee silence and negatively predict job engagement. Significant results were not found for the moderation and mediation analysis of personality traits and job engagement, respectively.

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16pf Couple’S Counseling Report: Gender Differences In Marital Satisfaction, Personality Similarity, And Relationship Adjustment Of Couples In Marital Therapy, Catherine Amelia Mullis Jul 2018

16pf Couple’S Counseling Report: Gender Differences In Marital Satisfaction, Personality Similarity, And Relationship Adjustment Of Couples In Marital Therapy, Catherine Amelia Mullis

Theses and Dissertations

The present study uses the16 Personality Factor Couple’s Counseling Report (16PF-CCR) to contribute to the current limited understanding of how gender differences, embedded in personality factors, influence marital satisfaction and relationship adjustment. Results were derived from 80 heterosexual couples (160 individuals) seeking marital counseling in a private practice setting. Statistically significant gender differences were found in Primary Personality Factors including Warmth, Sensitivity, Rule-consciousness, Privateness, Emotional Stability, and Tension. Statistical significant gender differences were observed within Global Personality Factors. Toughmindedness, most closely related to the Openness component of the Five Factor Model of Personality, accounted for a substantial amount of the …

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Morphology Of The Olfactory Apparatus In Leptocephalus Larvae, Molly Ann Wightman Jul 2018

Morphology Of The Olfactory Apparatus In Leptocephalus Larvae, Molly Ann Wightman

Theses and Dissertations

Leptocephalus larvae are a unique larval form that unites the Elopomorph fishes. This larval form has morphological and cellular characteristics that differ from most other teleost fishes. The visual system of leptocephali rod-dominated retinas, leading to poor photopic vision and low visual acuity that would hinder feeding on planktonic prey. Recent studies indicate they feed marine snow, which is composed of mucilaginous materials, bacteria and plankton. Their low visual acuity raises the question of how these organisms find this gelatinous food source in the wild. I hypothesize that these larval fishes use chemoreception in order to find marine snow, and …

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An Analysis Of The Relationship Between Orthopedic Drill Bit And Screw Diameter On Drilling Energy And Axial Load Pullout Strength, Scott J. J. Baskerville Jul 2018

An Analysis Of The Relationship Between Orthopedic Drill Bit And Screw Diameter On Drilling Energy And Axial Load Pullout Strength, Scott J. J. Baskerville

Theses and Dissertations

The number of orthopedic procedures performed per year in the United States is expected to grow to 6.6 million by 2020 (1). Most of these surgeries involve some degree of bone drilling and screw fixation, putting many patients at risk of the adverse effects of the heat-induced osteonecrosis which can limit the holding strength of bone screws and the efficacy of the screw-dependent fixtures. Excessive heat-induced osteonecrosis can occur when surgeons prolong the drilling procedure to avoid drill plunge, which can cause damage to soft neurovascular tissues local to the drilling site (2). The SMARTdrill system used in this study …

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Cognitive, Emotional, And Contextual Factors Related To Delusional Ideation, Sharanjit D. Pujji Jun 2018

Cognitive, Emotional, And Contextual Factors Related To Delusional Ideation, Sharanjit D. Pujji

Theses and Dissertations

Our beliefs profoundly influence how we interact and understand the experiences we have and the world around us. However, some individuals may develop 'false' beliefs (i.e., delusions) that are not grounded in consensual reality that may create adversities for the individual or others. Although various theories have been developed relating to the formation and maintenance of delusions, explaining their origins, meanings, and precise influence is a difficult task due to the highly individualistic nature of beliefs. The current study examined a number of likely candidate processes suspected of contributing to the formation and maintenance of delusional ideation in a sub-clinical …

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Chamaecrista Fasciculata In Tallgrass And Sand Prairies: The Potential For Differential Responses, Robert W. Philips Jun 2018

Chamaecrista Fasciculata In Tallgrass And Sand Prairies: The Potential For Differential Responses, Robert W. Philips

Theses and Dissertations

Successful establishment of a diversity of native species has become an important goal for restoration site managers to achieve, however as seed sources for a species may occur in habitats with different abiotic and biotic characteristics. Consequently, seeds from different sources may vary in their success in a restoration. Chamaecrista fasciculata, a native prairie species, occurs in two divergent prairie types - tallgrass and sand prairies. Tallgrass prairies have a moist soil with dense vegetation; in contrast, sand prairies have a well-drained sandy soil with sparse vegetation. I propose differential selection acting on populations in these prairie types would affect …

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When Does Less Equal More? Assessing The Mechanisms Driving Compensatory Mortality And The Hydra Effect, Joseph T. Neale Jun 2018

When Does Less Equal More? Assessing The Mechanisms Driving Compensatory Mortality And The Hydra Effect, Joseph T. Neale

Theses and Dissertations

Many populations across taxa are regulated by negative density-dependence, wherein increased population sizes lead to decreased birth rates and/or increased mortality. By releasing such populations from some level of these density-dependent effects, extrinsic mortality can lead to counter-intuitive results, such as no change in population size (compensation), or an increase in population size (overcompensation). These results have been documented experimentally, but there currently exists a dearth of empirical studies exploring the mechanisms behind the phenomenon. We tested the relationship between extrinsic mortality level and (over)compensation in four mosquito species – Aedes aegypti, A. albopictus, A. triseriatus, and Culex pipiens – …

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Is The Montessori Method A Solution To Improve Public Education? Comparing Two Pedagogical Models In Urban Schools, Iwona Beata Franczak Jun 2018

Is The Montessori Method A Solution To Improve Public Education? Comparing Two Pedagogical Models In Urban Schools, Iwona Beata Franczak

Theses and Dissertations

Education is one of the most important social institutions that can improve quality of life. While our schools, ostensibly, provide for equal education for all, they differ in their curricula and resources that ultimately impact the quality of learning experiences. Distinguished educational organizations emphasize the need to implement our curricula with constructivist pedagogy. Montessori is a holistic educational model that embraces this approach. While studies show that Montessori methods provide positive outcomes for students, these studies are largely limited to performance of students attending private schools. The purpose of this work is to examine the effectiveness of public conventional and …

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Dynamics Of Perception Of Affordances For Reaching For Self And Other, Alex Dayer Jun 2018

Dynamics Of Perception Of Affordances For Reaching For Self And Other, Alex Dayer

Theses and Dissertations

Perceivers are sensitive to the boundaries at which they must transition from one mode of performing a given behavior to another. As in other self-organizing systems, such transitions occur at a critical value of a parameter with continuous changes in that parameter. In general, behavioral transitions occur at larger values when that parameter increases than when it decreases (positive hysteresis), and perceptual transitions (for a behavior to be performed by one’s self) occur at larger values when that parameter decreases than when it increases (negative hysteresis). We investigated whether this pattern also occurs in perceptual transitions for a behavior to …

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Emotional Overtones Of Professional Jargon As Experienced By English And Bilingual Speakers, Daisy Bueno Jun 2018

Emotional Overtones Of Professional Jargon As Experienced By English And Bilingual Speakers, Daisy Bueno

Theses and Dissertations

Previous research has suggested that technical language is regularly used in the area of clinical practice called Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA). However, the use of this technical language or jargon may elicit unpleasant emotional responses that could be expected to “turn off” clients or parents of child clients. To understand how emotional overtones of words may interfere with therapist-client communication, the current study utilized an online data collection tool to obtain word emotion ratings of jargon words and terms. The first study is a replication and extension of past research that used existing word emotion ratings for ABA jargon words …

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Process Intervention For Water Recovery In Food Manufacture, Christian Michael Wisniewski Jun 2018

Process Intervention For Water Recovery In Food Manufacture, Christian Michael Wisniewski

Theses and Dissertations

A case study has been conducted for the recovery of water from complex wastewater at a soluble coffee manufacturing factory. The study has evaluated separation methods for process intervention based on environmental and economic assessments. Water recovery was identified in two possible wastewater streams at the factory: the overall plant effluent and an intermediate stream before it enters on-site pre-treatment. A novel vibratory field membrane separation was tested at the laboratory scale using real factory wastewater and scaled-up using appropriate design protocols. Recovery of water from the intermediate stream proved the most effective, both environmentally and economically. The full-scale vibratory …

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Supporting Intermediate Teachers' Implementation Of The Ngss Through A Collaboration Based On Mutuality, Elisha Nichole Swanson Jun 2018

Supporting Intermediate Teachers' Implementation Of The Ngss Through A Collaboration Based On Mutuality, Elisha Nichole Swanson

Theses and Dissertations

The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) are based on a wealth of research on science education and student learning and written by a range of experts from relevant fields. This study is significant and timely, given the recent release of these standards which are designed to build a scientifically literate and productive society. The potential impact on K-12 students rests on the shoulders of educational professionals in the schools. The elementary level presents a unique set of challenges for quality science instruction, implicating a need for classroom support to address limiting factors. The scope of the study is narrow; a …

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Smelling Weakness: Mechanical Damage Influences The Volatile Emissions Of Prunus Bark, Matthew Hetherington Jun 2018

Smelling Weakness: Mechanical Damage Influences The Volatile Emissions Of Prunus Bark, Matthew Hetherington

Theses and Dissertations

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted from plants often mediate interactions with constituents of the broader ecosystem. In this study I examined the extent to which VOCs emitted from the bark of Prunus species change after mechanical wounding, and thereby influence the behavior of Sesiid peach pests. This research represents the first application of solid-phase microextraction to the characterization of Prunus bark volatiles and the first investigation of bark emissions as mediators of Sesiid behavior in three decades. I document significant decreases in benzaldehyde emission coinciding with increases in benzyl cyanide, p-cymene, linalool, and camphene after wounding in both Prunus species …

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Studying Low Complexity Structures In Bioinformatics & Computational Biology Data Analysis Of Biological And Biomedical Data, Jason Lee Causey Jun 2018

Studying Low Complexity Structures In Bioinformatics & Computational Biology Data Analysis Of Biological And Biomedical Data, Jason Lee Causey

Theses and Dissertations

Biological, biomedical, and radiological data tend to be large, complex, and noisy. Gene expression studies contain expression levels for thousands of genes and hundreds or thousands of patients. Chest Computed Tomography images used for diagnosing lung cancer consist of hundreds of 2-D image ”slices”, each containing hundreds of thousands of pixels. Beneath the size and apparent complexity of many of these data are simple and sparse structures. These low complexity structures can be leveraged into new approaches to biological, biomedical, and radiological data analyses. Two examples are presented here. First, a new framework SparRec (Sparse Recovery) for imputation of GWAS …

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The Epsilon-Skew Exponentiated Beta Distribution, Chary Akmyradov Jun 2018

The Epsilon-Skew Exponentiated Beta Distribution, Chary Akmyradov

Theses and Dissertations

In this dissertation, we develop the Epsilon Skew Exponentiated Beta Distribution. This distribution is a bimodal skew distribution with shape, location, and skewness parameters. This distribution is useful in applications with bimodal data, such as in the biological data. The shape properties and the effects of parameters are discussed. Furthermore, we derived the mode and the expected values, mean and variance. In addition, we derive the moment generating function and develop the likelihood function. Parameter estimates are also developed. Then, we develop a simulation to generate the Epsilon Skew Exponentiated Beta random variables and use this new distribution in real …

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The Effects Of Metacognitive Listening Strategy Instruction On Esl Learners' Listening Motivation, Corbin Kalanikiakahi Rivera Jun 2018

The Effects Of Metacognitive Listening Strategy Instruction On Esl Learners' Listening Motivation, Corbin Kalanikiakahi Rivera

Theses and Dissertations

Prior studies looking at the effects of listening strategy instruction on motivation have shown there to be a positive correlation between the two. However, the participants of these studies all shared a first language (L1) and were not enrolled in an intensive English program (IEP). This study aims to investigate the correlation between listening strategy instruction and listening motivation in an IEP classroom for students from different L1s. Listening motivation was recorded utilizing the English Listening Comprehension Motivation Scale (ELCMS) and strategy use was tracked with the Metacognitive Awareness Listening Questionnaire (MALQ). Pre- and post-test scores of 56 participants (control …

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Biomarker Analysis And Clinical Relevance Of Thymidine Kinase 1 In Solid And Hematological Malignancies, Evita Giraldez Weagel Jun 2018

Biomarker Analysis And Clinical Relevance Of Thymidine Kinase 1 In Solid And Hematological Malignancies, Evita Giraldez Weagel

Theses and Dissertations

Despite the global effort to discover and improve ways to detect, treat, and monitor cancer, it still remains the second leading cause of death in the United States and poses a major health and economic burden worldwide. While traditional treatments like surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and hormone therapy have been successful and have decreased cancer mortality, cancer incidence in all sites continues to rise. Consequently, there is an immediate need to find new therapeutics for the treatment of cancer. In recent years, and with the continuing push towards personalized medicine, cancer biomarkers have become crucial to detect, treat, and monitor …

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Effects Of Larynx Preservation Method On Phonation Threshold Pressure In An Excised Porcine Benchtop Model, Chelsea Savannah Pipkin Litster Jun 2018

Effects Of Larynx Preservation Method On Phonation Threshold Pressure In An Excised Porcine Benchtop Model, Chelsea Savannah Pipkin Litster

Theses and Dissertations

Several studies involving excised animal larynges have been performed to simulate the structural and physiological properties of the human larynx. The most common way to preserve the laryngeal tissue being studied is by immersing it in a 0.9% isotonic saline solution and then flash freezing it. Isotonic saline is used empirically to replenish the potential ion loss that occurs postmortem. Each larynx is flash frozen so it can be used at a more convenient time while still maintaining the integrity of the tissue. However, the preservation methods found in previous studies tend to vary and no consensus had been reached …

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Lunchtime Experiences And Students' Sense Of Belonging In Middle School, Anna Elisabeth Hinton Jun 2018

Lunchtime Experiences And Students' Sense Of Belonging In Middle School, Anna Elisabeth Hinton

Theses and Dissertations

We know that it is important that students feel a sense of belonging in school, but additional research is needed to better understand the influences on belonging, especially for junior high and middle school students. Junior high lunchtime is an ideal space to study as a potential influence on belonging because it is a central part of the secondary school experience and it is a social space for students. The purpose of this study is to connect lunchtime experiences to school belonging by showing that how students experience lunchtime and how this affects their overall sense of belonging in school.Descriptive …

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Anaerobic Digestion Of Organic Waste: A Kitchen Waste Case Study, Charles Sendaaza Jun 2018

Anaerobic Digestion Of Organic Waste: A Kitchen Waste Case Study, Charles Sendaaza

Theses and Dissertations

Rapid population growth, urbanization, improved living standards and a shift in the consumption patterns have accordingly escalated the intensity of waste generation. The 2012 World Bank report on solid waste estimated the annual municipal solid waste generation at 1.3 billion tons per year with a projection of over a 40% increase in the annual generation rate by 2025 and a 300% increase by 2100 worldwide. Nearly half of the generated municipal solid waste is organic, including food wastes. About 30% of the food produced annually is wasted at different stages along the food supply chain before human consumption. Kitchens serving …

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Spaces Of Escape: Sexuality In The Age Of The Internet., Miral A. Mahmoud Jun 2018

Spaces Of Escape: Sexuality In The Age Of The Internet., Miral A. Mahmoud

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is an online ethnographic study of anonymous sexual interactions and expressions on the internet in twenty first century Egypt. I draw on how the internet is used as a space of freedom and resistance against the regulatory powers of state, society and religion, which decides how sexuality is expressed, discussed and practiced. I look at how a parallel sex culture is constructed online as opposed to the offline hegemonic, heteronormative sex culture. I observe sexual interactions and expressions in three anonymous internet platforms: an Egyptian chat room and two closed secret social media groups. I explore how alternative …

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Unbiased Spontaneous Solar Fuel Production Using Stable Composite Nanofiber Photocatalysts, Menna Hasan Jun 2018

Unbiased Spontaneous Solar Fuel Production Using Stable Composite Nanofiber Photocatalysts, Menna Hasan

Theses and Dissertations

It is becoming more urgent every day to find an efficient alternative to fossil fuels. This need motivates the search for a low-cost and stable photocatalysts to split water and generate hydrogen gas as a clean and renewable source of energy. In this thesis, novel TiO2-CuO and TiO2-Cu composite nanofibers were fabricated and tested for solar hydrogen generation. The effect of annealing the nanofibers in different atmospheres on their crystal structure and morphology was investigated and correlated to the photocatalytic activity of the materials using XRD, electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) techniques, transmission electron microscopy TEM, and Fourier transform infrared FTIR. …

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Investigating Circulatory Microrna Expression Profiles In Egyptian Patients With Hcv Induced Hepatocellular Carcinoma, Amany Al Anany Jun 2018

Investigating Circulatory Microrna Expression Profiles In Egyptian Patients With Hcv Induced Hepatocellular Carcinoma, Amany Al Anany

Theses and Dissertations

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a serious health challenge affecting over 185 million individuals globally. Egypt has the highest rate for chronic HCV infection worldwide. Recent studies have shown that from 10%-30% of HCV infected individuals would progress to more deteriorating conditions such as cirrhosis and/or hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Current biomarkers for HCC diagnosis are lacking both sensitivity and specificity. As a result there is demand to develop reliable biomarkers that are sensitive, specific and non-invasive for early diagnosis and rapid intervention of HCC to increase the survival rate of patients. Recently, circulatory miRNAs have drawn great attention as …

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An Introductory Study Of Solid Materials For Capture And Catalysis Of Waste Stream Chemicals, Steven Kyle Butler Jun 2018

An Introductory Study Of Solid Materials For Capture And Catalysis Of Waste Stream Chemicals, Steven Kyle Butler

Theses and Dissertations

Heterogeneous catalysts are key materials in research and industry. Herein we study two materials in different stages of development toward being applied as heterogeneous catalysts. First, MoO3SnO2 was synthesized and studied as a catalytic system similar to Sn-beta zeolites. While the Mo-based catalyst did not show similar activity to Sn-beta, it did show interesting reactivity in activating carbonyls and oxidizing organic substrates. Second, a method was developed for grafting amines onto carboxylic acid functionalized carbon nanotubes for CO2 capture. The method was successful for grafting monomer ethylamine groups onto CNT and can be further developed to allow for polymeric amine …

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