Digital Commons Network^™

The Reduction Of Central Line-Associated Bloodstream Infections In Intensive Care Units Through The Implementation Of The Comprehensive Unit-Based Safety Program, Michael Andrew Basinger

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) are one of the most significant healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) setting resulting in increased lengths of stay, increased healthcare costs, and higher mortality rates (Institute of Healthcare Improvement [IHI], 2012). Evidence that CLABSIs are largely preventable has created opportunities for healthcare organizations to implement evidence-based bloodstream infection prevention practices to reduce or eliminate these infections (Lissauer, Leekisa, Prease, Thom, & Johnson, 2012). Other efforts to reduce CLABSIs include implementation of safety programs to improve the safety culture in ICUs (Lissauer et al., 2012). One program, the comprehensive unit-based safety program …

Cognitive Differences Between High And Low Responders Of A Tier Ii Reading Intervention, Jillian Cohen

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This study evaluated a population of young students with potential reading disabilities who participated in a large western school district's Reading Skills Development project from October 2012 to May 2013. The following questions were addressed: Are there cognitive differences between students who respond well to an intense Tier II reading intervention and those who make little progress? If so, which cognitive skills best discriminate between high and low responders? De-identified data was collected from 171 struggling readers in 1st through 3rd grade who participated in the Reading Skills project. After controlling for English proficiency level, high and low responders were …

"I Got Shot Five Times And I Got Crucified To The Media": Tupac Amaru Shakur -- Moral Panic, Media Crucifixion And Resurrection, Lucas Jerome Combs

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This thesis looks at why the media had and continues to have a fascination with the late rap artist Tupac Amaru Shakur. A content analysis of coverage from twelve newspaper publications was used to better understand the nature of the coverage on Shakur. Analysis of coverage after Shakur's death determines the tone of coverage varied from the coverage when the rapper was alive. The concept of moral panic explains media attitude.

Simulation Of Thermal Transit-Time Flow Meter For High Temperature, Corrosive And Irradiation Environment, Elaheh Alidoosti

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In the environments of high temperature (300o C - 1000o C), corrosive and even irradiation application, the challenges of providing reliable and accurate flow rate measurement is significant. In comparing with many other existing technologies for normal operation environments, correlated thermal transit-time flow meter show its advantages of resolving the challenges encountered in those harsh conditions. The correlated thermal signals can be detected by two separated thermal sensors (for example, thermocouples) in series alignment along the pipe, and derive the flow rate. It was evaluated to have accurate measurement for small pipe at slow fluid speed. In the higher flow …

An Analysis Of Capacity Issues Within The Division Of Mental And Behavioral Health For The State Of Nevada, Jeffrey Buchwald, Tara Cooley, Enrique Mazon Jr., Jessica Sifuentes

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Background

Nevada’s competitiveness in receiving federal funding has been a serious and contentious topic that has steered recent efforts to ascertain ways the state can increase and utilize federal dollars efficiently. Nevada is positioned 53rd out of 53 U.S. states and territories in bringing federal dollars to the state, missing out on $1.5 billion annually (Gustafson, 2012). Nevada spends far less on Medicaid (per capita) than any other state. Medicaid is a key factor in improving Nevada’s position; however, there are additional non-formula funding opportunities that are missed every year.

Purpose

The purpose of this evaluation project is to identify …

A Historical Comparative Analysis Of Executions In The United States From 1608 To 2009, Emily Jean Abili

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The death penalty has been a contested issue throughout American history. The United States has been executing offenders since Jamestown became a colony in 1608 (Allen & Clubb, 2008). Since that time, many issues have been raised about the death penalty including whether or not it is moral, discriminatory, or a deterrent.

This study examines the history of executions, including lynchings, in the United States from 1608 to 2009 using a variety of sociological theories on law and society. Some of the research questions that guide this project are:

* What is the nature of change in the relative prevalence …

Assessing Different Zeolitic Adsorbents For Their Potential Use In Kr And Xe Separation, Breetha Alagappan

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Separation of Kr from Xe is an important problem in spent nuclear fuel fission gas management. The energy intensive and expensive cryogenic distillation method is currently used to separate these gases. In this thesis, we have carried out the research into appropriate sorbents for the separation of Kr and Xe using pressure swing adsorption. We have examined zeolites using gas adsorption studies as they have the potential to be more cost effective than other sorbents. Zeolites are microporous aluminosilicates and have ordered pore structures. The pores in zeolites have extra-framework cations are substantially free to move. The mobility of cations …

Sex Determination Using Discriminant Function Analysis In Hispanic Children And Adolescents: A Lateral Cephalometric Study, Alyssa E. Sprowl

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Lateral cephalometric radiographs have been used for years to help diagnose skeletal and dental patterns in Orthodontics. Within the last decade, these radiographs have caught the interest of the department of Anthropology for the identification of gender within the adult and adolescent population. Numerous publications have been made but failed to identify sexual dimorphism in the pre-adolescent population. 303 lateral cephalograms of pre and post Latino adolescence age ranging from 6.5 to 17.9 years old were obtained from University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) digital database. 25 variables were identified and plotted with all linear and angular measurements transferred into …

Assessing Growth Response To Climate Controls In A Great Basin Artemisia Tridentata Plant Community, Lorenzo F. Apodaca

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

An assessment of the growth response of key vegetative species to climatic variability is vital to identifying possible local impacts on ecosystems faced with imminent climate change. With current climate projections in Nevada predicting a shift to an even more arid climate with greater year-to-year variability, the imperative exists to identify the effects of specific climatic controls on plant growth and to research methods to assess large-scale vegetative changes, especially in more remote areas where readily available data sets may be lacking. This study utilized annual growth ring indices constructed from big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentatassp.tridentata) stems collected in Spring Valley, …

Evaluation Of The Relationship Between Nutrition Knowledge And Disordered Eating Risk In Female Collegiate Athletes, Amy L. Miracle

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Involvement in collegiate sports among female athletes is at an all-time high with approximately 198,000 currently participating, (National Collegiate Athletic Association, 2012). With this increase in female participation in collegiate sports, the pressures of sport participation and academics lead some women to engage in harmful eating behaviors. These harmful eating behaviors may lead to the development of disordered eating (C. Johnson, Powers, & Dick, 1999; Quatromoni, 2008; Reel, SooHoo, Petrie, Greenleaf, & Carter, 2010; Reinking & Alexander, 2005). Many factors have been identified as contributing to the development of disordered eating but nutrition knowledge or lack thereof, has yet to …

Hospital To School Transitions For Children: A Multiple Case Study Of Family Experiences, Rhiannon Yvonne Rager

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Children with emotional and behavioral disorders often present with significant impairments in social, emotional, and academic functioning. For those with the most severe impairments, hospitalization is an essential intervention. Prior to releasing children from the hospital, a discharge plan is typically created in order to facilitate successful transition from the hospital setting. Ideally, these plans set the stage for post-hospitalization supports by outlining a course of action for caregivers and coordinating services, with the ultimate goal of helping children maintain gains and reducing recidivism. Research suggests that current practices do not incorporate educational needs and supports into discharge plans. Although …

A Qualitative Study Of Past Student-Participants' Perceptions Of College Mentoring Relationships: A Case Within A Hospitality College, Roberta Jo Barnes

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The hospitality industry, encompassing both tourism and leisure segments, has become the world's largest employer. As such, there is a workforce need to develop leadership bench strength through degree programming at the university level. Preparing future leaders for careers in the hospitality industry as part of university curriculum is particularly challenging as operational practices, leadership competencies, and interpersonal skills are often not instructed in the classroom environment, yet are a critical element of supervisory performance. Workforce development perspectives suggest that mentoring is a development tool to narrow programming gaps in university curriculum.

The study explores past student-participants' relationship experiences in …

Examination Of Student, Program, And Institutional Support Characteristics That Relate To Pga Golf Management Students' Intent To Persist, Christopher Paul Cain

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The examination of student (entry characteristics, academic performance, career goals, and interaction with peers and faculty), program (programmatic interventions, academic major, and learning communities), and institutional support characteristics (financial aid and residence) that relate to cohort intent to persist are studied among 490 PGA Golf Management University Program undergraduate students from 12 universities. Results from this analysis will offer insight into which persistence factors lead to students' matriculation to the next cohort, with the ultimate goal of program completion. Identifying persistence factors related to student, program, and institutional support characteristics will help guide PGA Golf Management University programs by: recruiting …

Snail Algorithm For Task Allocation In Mesh Networks, Bartosz Duszel

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Topic of this master's thesis is connected with task allocation algorithms and mesh networks. Author of this work has already graduated from Wroclaw, University of Technology (Poland) where during his studies he created software simulation environment for two different task allocation algorithms for mesh networks:Adaptive ScanandFrame Sliding. Those algorithms were compared by two, main parame- ters: simulation time and average mesh fulfillment (utilization level). All simulations were done in software environment which was developed specially for that research. This application was based on few, different types of objects: task (width, height, processing time), task queue (different number of tasks), task …

A Christian Mega Church Strives For Relevance: Examining Social Media And Religiosity, Kenthea Albert-Leigh Joan Fogenay

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the relationship between Facebook and Twitter uses and gratifications and religiosity. Non-denominational Christian mega churches focus their outreach programs on a "come-as-you-are" attitude with the hopes of making people feel comfortable. The interactive technology in our daily lives also infiltrates our experience at church. The congregation now has the ability to worship through technologies endorsed by leadership (Watson & Scalen, 2008; Bogomilova, 2004; Thomas, 2009). In order for churches to engage in effective communication, they must understand how people use social networking. Through survey methodology, the researcher takes an account of how …

Factors Associated With Parental Decision Making And Childhood Vaccination, Zuwen Qiu-Shultz

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In order to better understand factors affecting immunization status, logistic regression was used to assess the association of various socio-demographic factors and whether parents would have their child immunized if not a state mandate. Factors included in the study were race, household income, number of children in the household, number of adults in the household, if the child had a primary provider, if the child had a health check-up in the last twelve months, and medical insurance status of the child. The combined Nevada Kindergarten Health Survey Result of 2009-2010 (Year Two) and 2010-2011 (Year Three) conducted by the Nevada …

Faculty And Student Perceptions Of Academic Cheating And The Influence Of Achievement Motivation With Online And Face-To-Face Learning Environments, Sherée Christine Royer

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

There are many components contributing to academically dishonest behaviors and with improvements in technology, methods for cheating have expanded to web-based classrooms. This study focuses on academically dishonest behaviors in online and face-to-face (F2F) course formats in an attempt to better understand the impact of cheating in these two learning environments. Additional factors in this study include the relationship between student and faculty achievement orientation and classroom context through the use of vignettes. Participants were students and faculty from a large Southwestern University and faculty members from a local smaller college in the same area. Respondents completed inventories using a …

Study Of Seat-Belt Usage In Nevada & Driver's Performance, Atul Sancheti

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), motor vehicle incidents has been reported to be the leading cause of the accidental deaths in the United States accounting for more than 42,000 deaths every year. Distracted driving and Driving under influence (DUI) are the major contributors to these roadway crashes. Moreover, drivers fatigue and drowsiness behind the wheel is another important factor contributing to the high fatality rate. These factors results in significant decline in the driver's abilities of perception, recognition and vehicle control.

It has also been reported by National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimated that about 292,471 …

The Role Of Music-Specific Representations When Processing Speech: Using A Musical Illusion To Elucidate Domain-Specific And -General Processes, Christina M. Vanden Bosch Der Nederlanden

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

When listening to music and language sounds, it is unclear whether adults recruit domain-specific or domain-general mechanisms to make sense of incoming sounds. Unique acoustic characteristics such as a greater reliance on rapid temporal transitions in speech relative to song may introduce misleading interpretations concerning shared and overlapping processes in the brain. By using a stimulus that is both ecologically valid and can be perceived as speech or song depending on context, the contribution of low- and high-level mechanisms may be teased apart. The stimuli employed in all experiments are auditory illusions from speech to song reported by Deutsch et …

This Is The Place: Utah's Gaming History And Current Attitude, Jackson Tad Butterfield

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Global gambling is what it is. It is global. Gambling has become an economic force to be reckoned with. It has spread to all corners of the globe, from Europe to North America to Asia. There are regions that have widely supported the introduction of gambling into their economy and society but there are also those that have shunned it, despite the clear economic advantages associated with gambling. The AGA estimated that total gambling revenue in the United States for 2012 was approximately $37.74 billion, with commercial casinos contributing approximately $8.6 billion to local communities via taxes (AGA, 2013c). This …

Time-Dependent Random Effect Poisson Random Field Model For Polymorphism Within And Between Two Related Species, Shilei Zhou

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Molecular evolution is partially driven by mutation, selection, random genetic drift, or combination of the three factors. To quantify the magnitude of these genetic forces, a previously developed time-dependent fixed effect Poisson random field model provides powerful likelihood and Bayesian estimates of mutation rate, selection coefficient, and species divergence time. The assumption of the fixed effect model that selection intensity is constant within a genetic locus but varies across genes is obviously biologically unrealistic, but it serves the original purpose of making statistical inference about selection and divergence between two related species they are individually at mutation-selection-drift inequilibrium. By relaxing …

Business Plan For A Korean Fine-Dining Restaurant In Las Vegas, Jihoon Kim

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The Korean food industry is enjoying international attention and growth as the Korean government’s globalization efforts spur the development of Korean restaurants in international markets such as the United States (Korean Food Foundation, 2013). Korean cuisine is being branded as healthy food that harmonizes nutrition and flavor (Jang & Ha, 2009). Now is the time to start new Korean restaurants in the U.S.’s ethnic cuisine market. This paper provides a business plan focusing on a fine-dining Korean restaurant operation in the Las Vegas market, which is currently devoid of such an operation.

What Factors Impact The Effectiveness Of International Non Governmental Organizations (Ingos) In Ethiopia, Ermias Abraham

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Since the 1970s Ethiopia has experienced a massive increase of International Non-Governmental Organizations (INGOs) in its territory. The multiplication of these INGOs seems to be the result of the activities of both international donors and governments in Ethiopia. International donors considered INGOs as efficient, flexible or adoptive to the needs of the community and more trustworthy than government agencies in implementing development projects. International donors also believe that the proliferation of INGOs in Ethiopia will stimulate the growth of political democracy and trade liberalization. The government allowed the influx of these INGOs in order to tap the resources they bring …

Dehumanization: As It Is Present Within Bullying Behaviors In An Anti-Bullying Program, Katelyn Amos

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Bullying is an aggressive act performed repeatedly on another enacting a power differential. This thesis utilized data collected from The Anti-Bullying Prevention Pilot Program (ABPPP), which studied bullying within eleven schools in a large metropolitan area in southwestern United States. The program was aimed to increase positive school climate through the use of Operation Respect and Welcoming Schools programs.

Consensual Qualitative Research (CQR) and mixed methods approaches were used in order to analyze interviews and questionnaires. Grounded Theory analysis procedures were used to code the information, and thick descriptions were utilized to illustrate the occurrence of dehumanization among across four …

Comparison Of Mesh And Meshless Methods For Partial Differential Equations Of Galerkin Form, Wallace F. Atterberry

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

There are two purposes of this research project. The first purpose is to compare two types of Galerkin methods: The finite element mesh method and moving least sqaures meshless Galerkin (EFG) method. The second purpose of this project is to determine if a hybrid between the mesh and meshless method is beneficial.

This manuscript will be divided into three main parts. The first part is chapter one which develops the finite element method. The second part (Chapter two) will be developing the meshless method. The last part will provide a method for combining the mesh and meshless methods for a …

Max Operation In Statistical Static Timing Analysis On The Non-Gaussian Variation Sources For Vlsi Circuits, Abu M. Baker

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

As CMOS technology continues to scale down, process variation introduces significant uncertainty in power and performance to VLSI circuits and significantly affects their reliability. If this uncertainty is not properly handled, it may become the bottleneck of CMOS technology improvement. As a result, deterministic analysis is no longer conservative and may result in either overestimation or underestimation of the circuit delay. As we know that Static-Timing Analysis (STA) is a deterministic way of computing the delay imposed by the circuits design and layout. It is based on a predetermined set of possible events of process variations, also called corners of …

Object Detection Using Contrast Enhancement And Dynamic Noise Reduction, Justin Lee Baker

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Edge detection is one of the most important steps a computer must perform to gain understanding of an object in a digital image either from disk or from video feed. Edge detection allows for the computer to describe the shape of the objects in an image and create a pixel boundary defining what is considered part of an object, and what is not. Cannys edge detection algorithm is one of the most robust and accurate of these edge detection algorithms. However, as with many algorithms in image processing, there are many cases where the algorithm does not perform as well …

Developing Ethical Competence: The Perspective Of Nurse Educators From Pre-Licensure Baccalaureate Nursing Programs Accredited By The Commission On Collegiate Nursing Education, Jennifer Lee Bartlett

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Nurses face ethically-charged situations every day, yet ethics education is not universally integrated into pre-licensure baccalaureate nursing programs. Like other forms of competence, ethical competence requires development. Nurse educators are poised to impact on the competence of their students, both defining the ethics content and designing students' exposure. The purpose of this study is to describe the concept of ethical competence from the perspective of baccalaureate nursing faculty and describe current methods of integration and evaluation of ethics education in pre-licensure baccalaureate nursing programs. This research will be conducted using a sequential (quantitative-qualitative) mixed method approach. The first phase of …

Temperature Trends And Urban Heat Island Intensity Mapping Of The Las Vegas Valley, Adam Leland Black

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Modified urban climate regions that are warmer than rural areas at night are referred to as Urban Heat Islands or UHI. Islands of warmer air over a city can be 12 degrees Celsius greater than the surrounding cooler air. The exponential growth in Las Vegas for the last two decades provides an opportunity to detect gradual temperature changes influenced by an increasing presence of urban materials. This thesis compares ground based thermometric observations and satellite based remote sensing temperature observations to identify temperature trends and UHI areas caused by urban development.

Analysis of temperature trends between 2000 and 2010 at …

Actresses Redefining Theater And Femininity In Eighteenth-Century France, Rebecca Anne Bolen

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Published in 1798 and 1800, the memoires of Hypolite Clairon and Marie-Françoise Marchand Dumesnil relate the experiences and values of individuals who lived through massive social and cultural, and eventually political, changes. How and when these two women felt the need to adhere to society's standards in comparison to those instances when they were confident enough to assert themselves illuminates the ways in which developing a public persona could open up a space for women to stretch the boundaries of feminine self-fashioning. This space was not unlimited and may have depended on actresses making concessions to societal expectations. It was …