Digital Commons Network^™

Faculty In Transition: A Qualitative Study Of The Vertical Extension Of A College, Susan A. Brorson

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the perceptions of faculty during the process of expanding an associate degree-granting technical college to a baccalaureate degree-granting polytechnic university. Two research questions were addressed:

1. What perceptions did faculty have about the vertical extension?

2. Did the faculty go through a transition process in adapting to the vertical extension? H yes, what transition process did they follow?

The site for this qualitative case study was the campus of the University of Minnesota, Crookston. Twenty-eight of 30 full-time tenured teaching faculty participated in this study. Qualitative research methods included open-ended interviews and the review …

An Incremental Approach To Revising National Housing Policy: An Analysis Of The Housing And Community Development Act Of 1992, Kathyrn R. Marschke

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Postmodernism And The Persian Golf Wat, Scot Stradley

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

A Comparison Of The Professional Development Of Graduate Nursing Students Enrolled In Distance Education And On-Campus Courses At The University Of North Dakota, Lonna T. Milburn, Nancy L. Mosbaek

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to compare the professional development of graduate nursing students enrolled in distance courses with those enrolled in on- campus courses. A census sample of distant graduate nursing students (n=18) and a random sample of on- campus graduate nursing students (n=28) responded to a demographic tool and Hall's Professional Inventory. A significant difference was noted between the distance students and on-campus students in belief in service to the public-Scale B, with distance students having a stronger belief in service to the public. A significant number of distance students belonged to the American Nurses Association, while …

To Perfect The Peace Establishment: Congressional Attempts To Find The Proper Size For The Regular Army, 1821-1855, Todd R. Laughman

Theses and Dissertations

This study is an attempt to understand better how the Congress of the United States worked to establish the proper size and form of the Peace Establishment of the United States between 1821 and 1855. Central to this study is an attempt to determine if partisan or sectional attitudes were key factors in how Congress viewed the Regular Army.

The research in this study is centered on the primary materials generated by the Congresses under study. The debates and speeches conducted in Congress as found in the contemporary reports of the day, the Journals of the House and Senate, and …

The Relationship Between Maternal-Fetal Attachment And Mother-To-Infant Bonding, Sharon L. Tucker

Theses and Dissertations

Mother to infant bonding is thought to be an important health outcome of nursing care during the perinatal period. Maternal attachment to the fetus may play a role in development of the subsequent bonding of a mother for her infant. Health professionals can have an impact on how a mother views her role performance, and is able to form a bond of attachment to her fetus and, subsequently, with her infant. Few studies, however, have been done to evaluate the relationship between the way a woman attaches to her fetus, and the way a new mother bonds with her infant. …

Foster Care Training In North Dakota: A Foster Parents' Perspective, Todd L. Nordquist

Theses and Dissertations

The major purpose of this study was to evaluate the level of satisfaction with training as reported by foster care providers in North Dakota. A secondary purpose of this exploratory study was having foster providers identify their foster child care responsibilities and major benefits of training.

Providers of each of the two major types of foster care in North Dakota, general foster care and therapeutic foster care, evaluated training received. This was done separately due to the different training objectives and procedures of each. Half of the 884 foster care households in North Dakota were randomly included in this study. …

Finland In The Anglo-American Press, 1939-1955: A Special Case?, John M. Pederson

Theses and Dissertations

The West's image of Finland and its policy towards Finland during World War II and the Cold War has been thought to be an exception to the framework of power politics and diplomacy. This thesis will seek to determine the validity of this assumption in the United States and Great Britain by examining the popular press of each country. This thesis will also explore what differences if any existed between the Anglo and American press. This thesis will attempt to understand the analysis, judgments, and opinions of the Anglo and American press regrading Finland and their impressions as to what …

The Impact Of Cowbird Parasitism On A North Dakota Population Of Clay-Colored Sparrows, Gregory P. Romig

Theses and Dissertations

The study was conducted from early May to late July, 1992 at Oakville Prairie, Grand Forks Co., North Dakota. The clay-colored sparrow (Spizella pallida) was the most common breeding bird at the site. Also abundant at Oakville was the brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater) , an obligcite brood parasite. The main objectives of the study were to assess the impact of cowbird parasitism on the reproductive success of this clay-colored sparrow population, and to examine some factors that may influence the probability that a given nest will be parasitized.

Forty-two clay-colored sparrow nests were found, and of these, 16 (38%) were …

Mitochondrial Dna Variation Within The Western-Clark's Grebe Complex (Podicipedidae: Aechmophorus), Bruce Alan Eichhorst

Theses and Dissertations

The Western Grebe (Aechmophorus occidentalis) and Clark's Grebe (A. clarkii) are considered to be closely related .. Until recently, they were regarded as color phases of one species--the Western Grebe. I assessed mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) variation within and between the Aechmophorus color phases. I also evaluated the plausibility of two vicariance models that have been. proposed to explain the evolution of the color phases. Grebes were collected from seven breeding sites, representing three geographic regions of the United States-Canada breeding range. Restriction-enzyme analysis of a total sample of 109 grebes was conducted. Estimates of nucleotide divergence ( dxy, da), nucleotide …

Training Needs Of Educators In Integration Of Students With Physical And Medical Disabilities Into The Regular Classroom., Peggy M. Mohr

Theses and Dissertations

The purposes of this study were to: (a) determine training needs of regular educators regarding integration of students with physical or medical disabilities, (b) compare perceived needs of elementary educators with those of secondary educators, and (c) determine characteristics of physical or medical handicapping conditions perceived to influence students' abilities to benefit from educational experiences. A sample of 505 regular educators was surveyed. Resulting data were analyzed utilizing frequency distributions, mean rank tables, percentages, crosstabulations, and chi-square statistics.Educators indicated perceived needs for training regarding integration of students with physical or medical disabilities. Eight priority need items were identified as: (a) …

A Comparison Of Aphasic Adults' Scores On The Western Aphasia Battery And Ratings On The Functional Independence Measure, Carla Phillips

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine for aphasic adults the relationship between scores on the Western Aphasia Battery (WAB) and ratings of the Functional Independence Measure (FLM). Fourteen aphasic adults with a mean age of 71 years, participated in this study. Each subject was interviewed by the researcher. Their communication skills in the areas of verbal expression, written expression, auditory comprehension, and reading comprehension were then rated on the FIM. The researcher conducted interviews using the seven point ordinal scale of the FIM. with each subject’s speech-language pathologist and a family member about the subjects' communication skills. The …

Classroom Computer Usage In Undergraduate Business Communication Courses In The Upper Midwest, Linda M. Cresap

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the status of classroom computer use in undergraduate business communication courses in institutions of higher education in the Upper Midwest and to identify factors related to computer use in these classrooms. The study explored classroom computer use; computer-mediated communication applications; faculty's computer experience and skills, resource availability, and perceptions of effectiveness of computer use; and factors related to computer use in business communication courses. Findings of the study were compared with selected policy statements developed by the Policies Commission for Business and Economic Education.

A survey instrument developed by the researcher was …

An Evaluation Of United States Foreign Agriculture Marketing Policies, Micheal T. Eggl

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Indian Self-Government: A Critical Assessment, Brent W. Larocque

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

A Case Study Of Secondary Interactions In A Theatre Production, Adonica N. Schultz

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Reagan Budget Cuts And City Spending On Welfare And Housing And Community Development, Lillian L. Eid

Theses and Dissertations

In President Reagan's New Federalism, the federal government had a decreased role in the domestic sector and the state and local governments had increased roles with more of the responsibilities. His grants-in-aid policy made the states play a larger leadership role. Reagan was critical of welfare and redistributive services programs. Under Reagan, was the federal government more apt to cut programs that targeted the poor and were the state and local governments less apt to replace the cuts? The point of the research was to determine the impact of the 1981 Reagan budget cuts on city spending for welfare and …

Multirate Time-Frequency Distributions, John R. O'Hair

Theses and Dissertations

Multirate systems, which find application in the design and analysis of filter banks, are demonstrated to also be useful as a computational paradigm. It is shown that any problem which can be expressed a set of vector-vector, matrix-vector or matrix-matrix operations can be recast using multirate. This means all of numerical linear algebra can be recast using multirate as the underlying computational paradigm. As a non-trivial example, the multirate computational paradigm is applied to the problem of Generalized Discrete Time- Frequency Distributions GDTFD to create a new family of fast algorithms. The first of this new class of distributions is …

Subgrouped Real Time Recurrent Learning Neural Networks, Jeffrey S. Dean

Theses and Dissertations

A subgrouped Real Time Recurrent Learning (RTRL) network was evaluated. The one layer net successfully learns the XOR problem, and can be trained to perform time dependent functions. The net was tested as a predictor on the behavior of a signal, based on past behavior. While the net was not able to predict the signal's future behavior, it tracked the signal closely. The net was also tested as a classifier for time varying phenomena; for the differentiation of five classes of vehicle images based on features extracted from the visual information. The net achieved a 99.2% accuracy in recognizing the …

Tacit Cooperation Between Enemies: Two Case Studies, Kristina Handy

Theses and Dissertations

This research details a point of reference to understand two case studies of cooperation that developed among lower-level, or non policy-making bureaucrats during times of conflict or war. Using components of game theory, I propose that when an international conflictual relationship occurs that resembles an iterated Prisoners' Dilemma, and that meets certain conditions, tacit cooperation can emerge. Tacit cooperation consists of illicit or implied cooperation that is not sanctioned at the national policy level.

In this research I develop a framework of tacit cooperation, relying heavily upon Robert Axelrod's theory of evolutionary cooperation. With the framework in place, I then …

Cutback Management And The Air Force Personnel System, David M. Abernathy

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Estimating Groundwater Flow Parameters Using Response Surface Methodology, Leo C. Adams

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examined the use of response surface methodology RSM as a parameter estimation technique in the field of groundwater flow modeling. Using RSM, an attempt was made to calibrate three hydraulic parameters porosity, transverse permeability, and rate of recharge of an existing two- dimensional, steady-state flow model. The model simulated groundwater flow for a portion of landfill 10 located on Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. The model had previously been calibrated by graphical matching observed water-levels to predicted water-levels. Using the parameter values from the earlier calibration effort as a starting point, a central composite design was developed and …

Transient Body Force Effects On The Dryout And Rewet Of A Heated Capillary Structure, Michael K. Reagan

Theses and Dissertations

A transient, one-dimensional numerical code was developed to model the liquid flow in a non-uniformly heated, axial square groove. The groove was subjected to transient body forces up to approximately 0.51 m/s² . Axial variation in meniscus levels, shear stress and heat transfer between the groove wall and the liquid, axial conduction through the liquid, evaporation and body forces were accounted for in the model. Dryout and rewet of the groove were allowed; the front location was determined using conservation of mass and linear extrapolation. A physical experiment was performed with a stainless steel plate into which eight square …

An Aerodynamic And Static-Stability Analysis Of The Hypersonic Applied Research Technology (Hart) Missile, Kenneth J. Moran

Theses and Dissertations

The flow about the complete Hypersonic Applied Research Technology (HART) missile is simulated for inviscid, laminar, and turbulent conditions and Mach numbers from 2 to 6. An explicit, second-order-accurate, flux-difference-splitting, algorithm is implemented and employed to solve the Navier-Stokes equations. The formulation models turbulence with the zero-equation, Baldwin-Lomax turbulence model, accounting for pressure-gradient and compressibility effects. The equations are solved using a finite-volume methodology. In the first part of the study, numerical experiments are performed using an infinitely thin-fin approximation. The aerodynamic and static-stability characteristics are investigated to determine if conventional supersonic missile configurations can be flown at Mach numbers …

Global Picture Archiving And Communication Systems (Gpacs): An Overview, Russell C. Ellis

Theses and Dissertations

The world is currently experiencing a computer revolution. With the expansion and development of new computer technology, the age of video is upon us. The medical world is also currently undergoing a dramatic change. With the development and perfection of non-invasive techniques of probing the body, large amounts of computer data is collected and much of it is used to generate images. The organization and management of these images is the topic of this thesis. The discussion of storage schemes, databases, communications and data compression techniques gives the reader a background and some insight to the current state of the …

Reflections Of Public Accounting Interns: A Qualitative Analysis Of Experiential Learning., Victoria Knapp Beard

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to capture the meaning and value of the public accounting internship experience from the perspective of the interns themselves and to broaden our understanding of the educational component of the internship experience. The goals were to complement prior research efforts and to contribute to improved implementation of internship programs.Research on the educational benefits of public accounting internships is incomplete. Past studies, primarily empirical, have focused on measuring the educational benefits of internships in terms of subsequent achievement. Insights and opinions of the interns themselves have been under-utilized, and the learning environment--at the accounting firms …

Functional Aspects Of Mitochondria In Copper-Deficient Rats., Jeannine Marie Matz

Theses and Dissertations

Morphological observations indicate that dietary copper deficiency causes structural damage to cardiac mitochondria. Even though marked structural changes have been observed in copper deficiency, a correlation between abnormality of mitochondrial structure and function has not been apparent in previous studies. The objective of the present project was to examine various aspects of cellular and mitochondrial function in copper deficient rat hearts; especially, (1) changes in mitochondrial function defined as respiration and ATP production, (2) the susceptibility of the mitochondria from copper deficient rat hearts to uncouplers and inhibitors of oxidative phosphorylation and electron transport, and (3) alterations in the activity, …

Four Rural Elementary Teachers' Stories Of Professional Knowledge Acquisition., Joanne Marie Larson

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to learn how teachers acquire knowledge about teaching. My hope was that, through the eyes of some of the teachers with whom I had worked, I could move beyond my own experiences in understanding how experienced teachers learn to teach, and, from that, how inservice education could better support teacher learning. I selected four experienced teachers whom I perceived as confident and effective. In a series of four interviews each teacher was asked to talk about her teaching. An interview guide was used to initiate and focus the discussion. Three portraits based on interviews …

Theoretical Studies Of Phosphinonitrene, Phosphinocarbene, P-Iminophosphaalkyne, And Related Compounds., Kathleen Marie Kuhler

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation in theoretical physical chemistry presents results of calculations on the electronic structures of polyatomic molecules using standard methods (SCF, MCSCF, CI, and UCEPA), as well as the development of new theory (QDCEPA).Using ab initio quantum mechanical techniques, a comparison of bonding involving the first row element nitrogen and the second row element phosphorous was made. The low-lying electronic states of the compounds H$\sb2$N$\sb2$ and H$\sb2$PN were studied, specifically the ground singlet, first triplet and excited singlet. The ground singlet and first triplet of H$\sb2$PCH and H$\sb2$NCH were studied. For each of the molecules, the equilibrium geometries, including bond …

Sense Of Coherence And Perception: Does Stress Resistance Equal Illusion?, Cheri L. Hexum

Theses and Dissertations

Sense of Coherence (SOC) is a personality characteristic which has been linked to mental and physical health. However, the factors that contribute to this link are, as yet, unclear. Our understanding of the link between personality and health may be improved by examining how personality characteristics manifest in specific circumstances (i.e., how they affect perceptions and judgments). The knowledge gained through the depressive realism research (which has looked at personality differences by examining their effect on perceptions and judgments in specific, controlled circumstances) was applied to SOC theory in an attempt to further clarify how SOC may influence our judgments. …