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Novel Macroscopic And Microscopic Concepts In Thermoelectricity, Troy Stedman

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Thermoelectric phenomena have been observed for the past two centuries while still being an interesting source of new research because of the countless unknowns governing thermoelectric transport in a host of materials. Novel materials and material structures continue to be discovered, providing enhanced thermoelectric effects that can be used in thermoelectric devices for power generation and refrigeration. With the increasing demand for reusable and renewable energy sources, the importance and usefulness of thermoelectric phenomena grows. It is therefore important to understand thermoelectric transport on both the larger macroscale of devices that serve to define material properties and the smaller microscale …

Promoting Healthy Sleep Practices Among Parents Of Young Children: A Preliminary Randomized Controlled Trial, Kristin Lynn Edwards

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

One of the most significant and underrecognized public health concerns in young children is related to the consequences of inadequate sleep. Inadequate sleep may result in problems related to behavioral regulation, executive functioning, and academic performance. ‘Sleep hygiene’, a term that describes consistent daytime and nighttime practices that promote healthy sleep, has been found to significantly increase sleep duration and improve sleep quality in the pediatric population. Researchers have found that many parents have a poor understanding of sleep hygiene. The purpose of this study was to determine if an educational intervention increased parental knowledge and practices of sleep hygiene …

Educators' Perceptions Of Students' Academic And Social Growth In A Collegiate High School Program., John Matthew Legg

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to examine educators’ perceptions of high school students’ academic and social growth in a collegiate college program. Collegiate high school programs afford opportunities to minorities and the economically disadvantaged, as well as first-generation college students (Aviles-Reyes, 2007). This research used a qualitative case study framework to collect information about educators’ perceptions of the academic and social integration of students in a collegiate college program. Data were collected in phases—educator focus group interviews and individual interviews—and subsequently coded and reviewed using thematic comparative analysis. The guiding question was as follows: What are educators’ perceptions of …

Past Climate And Sea-Level Reconstruction Using Cave Deposits From Mallorca, Spain, Oana-Alexandra Dumitru

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The potential impacts of the increasing temperature on the water resources, as well as the hazards associated with the sea-level rise in the low-elevation coastal zones of the Mediterranean Sea, makes this region vulnerable to current climate change due to global warming. Hence, accurate projections of the future hydroclimate scenarios in this area are crucial. Long-term information on climate and sea-level variability cannot be obtained by direct observations or using short instrumental records. However, various geological archives may provide valuable data that can be then used to assess the models used for future predictions.

This thesis presents results on past …

A Comparison Of Different Modeling Techniques To Establish Token Reinforcers In Classroom Settings, Spencer B. Gauert

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Prior research has supported the use of reinforcer-based methods in school settings. Video based modeling methods for establishing conditioned reinforcers without the need for explicit pairing with primary reinforcers can help to extend the use of these resources into new contexts. The use of video based conditioning has potential applications in school settings to increase academic skills without the use of more costly-to-implement reinforcer systems. However, conditioning of this kind might be restricted by the need to individually condition stimuli with different participants. The current study evaluated effects of video based conditioning on relative rate of sight word reading across …

Investigating Among-Individual Growth Heterogeneity In Longleaf Pine: Advancing Dendrochronological Approaches, Jamie E. Munn

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Within a population, individuals frequently differ in the rate at which they grow, and this rate can be impacted by both genetic differences and abiotic factors. Often, dendrochronology is used to elucidate growth trends based on climate or other factors. This dissertation explores new statistical approaches to dendrochronological research.

First, I created a chronology for a population of longleaf pine (Pinus palustris P. Mill.) individuals in a southwest Florida sandhill community. I then used generalized linear mixed models to investigate the effects of fire frequency, year, tree age and size, and elevation on variation in radial growth heterogeneity. I then …

A Novel Cytokine Response Modulatory Function Of Mek Inhibitors Mediates Therapeutic Efficacy, Mengyu Xie

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Despite the recent success of immune-checkpoint blockade therapy for late-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), lung cancer is still the leading cause of cancer deaths worldwide. One of the most important characteristics of lung cancer in therapeutic decision-making are the targetable molecules, including EGFR, ALK, BRAF, and MEK. The excitement of immune-checkpoint blockade therapy has triggered concerted efforts that focus on exploring combinations of immune checkpoint therapy with other approved therapeutic regimens aiming at further augmenting positive outcomes and survival. However, the lack of understanding of underlying mechanisms and evidence-based clinical testing has hindered the progress to a cure. Hence, …

“We Can Learn Some Things From Them, But They Can Learn Some Things From Us Too”: Intergenerational Perceptions Of Shared Infant Feeding Information, Alexis L. Woods Barr

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Breastfeeding is associated with unparalleled benefits for infants, mothers, families and society. In light of the breastfeeding disparities and health disparities experienced by the African American community, their women and children stand to gain the most from breastfeeding practices compared to other first-food feeding methods. Moreover, African American mothers are constantly exposed to messages, images, and stereotypes about motherhood (from multiple channels of communication) which influences their infant feeding practices. Many of these exposures send mixed messages and tend to be cultural contradictions of Black motherhood. What complicates this issue is the shortage of research that investigates the intergenerational infant …

Millimeter-Wavelength Characterization Of The Co Emission Of Comets 174p/Echeclus, 29p/Schwassmann-Wachmann, And C/2016 R2 (Panstarrs), Kacper Wierzchos

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Comets are fascinating minor solar system bodies. They contain some of the most pristine and unprocessed material found in the solar system. As a comet approaches the Sun it displays the characteristic cometary coma and tail. This is due to the release of volatile species through a variety of processes. In the present work I studied the carbon monoxide emission of three very unique comets; 174P/Echeclus, 29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann and C/2016 R2 (PanSTARRS) with different radio telescopes at millimeter wavelengths. After molecular hydrogen, carbon monoxide is the second most abundant molecule in the universe, and is also the most volatile of the …

Taking An “Ecological Turn” In The Evaluation Of Rhetorical Interventions, Peter Cannon

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation seeks to develop a new method for the evaluation and assessment of therapeutic libraries in a health ecology. To do so, I employ a modified version of Lloyd Bitzer’s rhetorical situation as a methodological tool for the investigation of health ecologies by applying an ecological analysis to an alcohol and other drug (AOD) treatment center in Tampa, Florida. By modifying Bitzer’s rhetorical situation schema and expanding the concept of health ecologies, I develop several innovations useful for tracing the impact of actants and rhetorical events specific to health and medicine. A major focus of this dissertation is a …

Epidemiological Analysis Of Malaria Decrease In El Salvador From 1955 Until 2017, Tatiana I. Gardellini Guevara

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The disease of malaria is complex, with clinical presentation that ranges from severe and complicated to mild and uncomplicated or even to asymptomatic malaria. A recent effort made by several world organizations has shown important advances in the effort to control and eradicate malaria. Following the general ordinance established by the trans-border organizations, each country has tried to define, according to their local geopolitical scenario, individual ¨road maps¨ to succeed in reducing the morbidity and mortality caused by malaria. Moreover, it is now accepted universally that these road maps need to be revised and appropriated in order to correct actions …

An Autobiographical Narrative Of A Principal's Personal Journey With Autonomy, Delilah Rabeiro

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Educational reform and state policies have stripped principals and teachers of autonomy, and this has been attributed as one of the reasons why teachers leave the profession. Adamson (2012) stated, "To implement reform at their school sites, principals need a certain degree of autonomy. This study sought to understand what I experienced of autonomy as I embarked on my journey as a principal of a turnaround school; what I did, or did not do, to extend autonomy to teachers; and what I came understand about autonomy in this turnaround setting.

This was an autobiographical narrative inquiry (Freeman, 2007; Saleh, Menon, …

Evaluating Conversation Agent Impact On Student Experience In A Distance Education Course, Grover Walters

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

We explore the efficacy of conversation agents operating as an instructional aid in a distance education course. Two aspects of efficacy are considered—conversation agent impact on student perceptions of the experience, and how different design features of the agent affect student perceptions of engagement. Evaluation of the agent is accomplished by collecting data from 24 undergraduate participants separated into random groups. We conduct two rounds of mixedmethod evaluation. Between the two rounds, a modification to the agent occurs based on the outcome of the first evaluation. Findings include limitations related to phrasing and data persistence features of the design that …

An Investigation Into The Heterogeneity Of Insect Arylalkylamine N-Acyltransferases, Brian G. O'Flynn

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Arylalkylamine N-acyltransferases (AANATs) have in recent years been suggested as potential new insecticide targets. These promiscuous enzymes are involved in the N-acylation of biogenic amines to form N-acylamides. Mammalian AANAT is predominantly associated with circadian rhythm regulation, as it catalyzes the formation of N-acetylserotonin, the precursor of melatonin, from serotonin. In insects, this process is a key step in melanism, as well as hardening of the cuticle, removal of biogenic amines, and in the biosynthesis of fatty acid amides. The unique nature of each insect AANAT (iAANAT) isoform characterized indicates that while catalyzing similar reactions, each insect accommodates …

Assessing The Effects Of Observational Conditioning And Response-Contingent Pairing On Increasing Vocalizations In Children With Asd, Sydni Chance

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Children with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) often display impairments in communication. More specifically, children with ASD may have difficulty developing language skills, for e.g., delay in verbal behavior, limited echoic skills, and/or lack of functional communication. A common way to combat this deficit is by increasing vocalizations in these children. Previous research has used various procedures to attempt to condition vocalizations as reinforcers, such as stimulus-stimulus pairing, response-contingent pairing (RCP), and operant discrimination training. Another procedure for conditioning stimuli is observational conditioning (OC), which is a type of observational learning. However, OC has not been assessed as a procedure …

Fractional Random Weighted Bootstrapping For Classification On Imbalanced Data With Ensemble Decision Tree Methods, Sean Charles Carter

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Ensemble methods are commonly used for building predictive models for classification. Models that are unstable to perturbations in the training set, such as the decision tree, often see considerable reductions in error when grouped, using bootstrapped resamples of the training data to train many models. The non-parametric bootstrap, however, has limited efficacy when used on severely imbalanced data, especially when the number of observations of one or more classes is exceptionally small. We explore the fractional random weighted bootstrap, which randomly assigns fractional weights to observations, as an alternative resampling pro cedure in training machine learning ensembles, particularly decision tree …

Measurement Of Changes In Forest Fragmentation Caused By Road Construction Between 2000 And 2014 Using Gis In St. Johns County, Florida, Ahmet Karatas

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Forests play a crucial role in maintaining the natural balance. They have essential features and structures used in the protection of flora and fauna. Human activities such as road construction disrupt ecosystems and negatively impact natural habitats. Roads cause forest fragmentation, and as a result of this, fragmentation has various negative effects on the natural habitat. These effects lead to loss of biological diversity, road mortality, habitat loss, fragmentation, and air pollution. The major goal of this study was to analyze changes in forest area, forest fragmentation, and forest road impacts using GIS for St. Johns County, Florida, between the …

Sorption Of Benzene, Toluene, Ethylbenzene And Different Ratios Of Mixture Solvent By Plasticized Pema Films Using A Qcm Sensor, Xinpeng Li

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

VOCs (volatile organic compounds) can cause great harm to human health especially benzene, toluene and ethylbenzene. In this work a Quartz Crystal Microbalance (QCM) sensor with a polymer/plasticizer film was developed to quantify the VOCs both in air and water. QCM is an acoustic wave sensor that can be used well in detecting the aromatic compounds in the film. Because more than one VOC is present in the air, this thesis focuses on finding the sorption of different ratios of VOCs (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene) using a polymer/plasticizer film in QCM. Poly (ethyl methacrylate) (PEMA) was used as the polymer because …

The Hostile Media Effect And Its Potential Consequences: Examining The Influence Of Presumed Influence Of International Media Coverage, Zhennan Liu

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to explore American and Chinese's perception towards foreign media's coverage about their own country, as well as the main influencing factors and its consequences of this phenomenon. We designed an online survey based on the existing literature on hostile media perception. The sample included 301 American participants and 300 Chinese participants (N=601).

The current study used paired sample T test, Pearson correlation coefficient and SEM model test. Three important results were found. First, hostile media perception is widespread. In the study, both American and Chinese participants were biased to varying degrees against foreign media …

Can Florida's Springs Coast Provide A Potential Refuge For Calcifying Organisms? Evidence From Benthic Foraminifera, Kyle E. Amergian

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Florida’s Springs Coast, located in the northeast Gulf of Mexico, includes an extensive system of salt marshes that discharge millions of liters of fresh water into coastal waters daily. The chemical properties of the spring waters include high alkalinity and high calcium concentrations due to the Paleogene limestone lithology of this region of Florida. Benthic foraminifers, which are recognized as ecologically important bioindicators, occur abundantly on the shallow shelf off the Springs Coast. Based on the prevalence of the benthic foraminifer Archaias angulatus in the seagrass beds along this shallow shelf, a previous study proposed that the Springs Coast provides …

Measuring And Utilizing High-Dimensional Information Of Optical Fields, Ziyi Zhu

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Currently, many areas of optical techniques including imaging, inspection and communication emphasize the utilization of the high-dimensional information encoded in optical fields. There is also a requirement for novel measurement techniques to extract this high-dimensional information with high-speed and accuracy. We firstly introduce a scan-free direct measurement technique that is capable of simultaneously characterizing the amplitude and phase of a coherent scalar optical field. Our direct measurement approach is constituted of a weak polarization perturbation which is followed by the recording of a polarization-resolving imaging process. The weak perturbation rotates the linear polarization on the spatial frequency domain of the …

Detection Of Gender-Related Differential Item Functioning (Dif) In The Mathematics Subtests In Turkey, Zeynep Merve Sapmaz

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The main goal of this study was to investigate differential item functioning by gender in the Fundamental Mathematics (FMS) and Mathematics subtests (MS) of the MSPC-2018 Higher Education Institutions Examination. Each test consists of 40 items and for both subtests random samples of 10.000 students were received from the MSPC separately. To compare non-IRT (Classical Test Theory) and Item Response Theory (IRT) approaches, Cochran-Mantel-Haenszel (C-M-H), Logistic Regression (LR), and 2-PL IRT-LR statistics were used.

For the FMS, C-M-H, LR, and 2-PL IRT-LR procedures identified 18, 16, and 10 out of 40 items that had DIF, respectively. Based on the non-IRT …

Enhancing Secrecy And Capacity Of Wireless Systems Using Directive Communications, Mohammed A. Hafez

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The emerging advances in wireless communications make it an essential component of our everyday life. Moreover, the current research aims towards involving wireless communications in health monitoring applications, which helps medical personnel to remotely keep track of the development of the condition of their patients. Such information is considered highly sensitive and may cause significant harm if acquired by an adversary. The wireless environment has a broadcast type of nature, where the emitted electromagnetic waves spread all over the surrounding area of the transmitting antenna. This broadcast nature raises a considerable concern about the secrecy of this sensitive information while …

Using Video Modeling To Teach Trial-Based Functional Analysis, Breana A. Pauline

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The trial-based functional analysis (Trial-based FA) was adapted from the traditional functional analysis (FA) to make FA methodology more feasible to conduct in situations where controlled settings are unavailable. Additionally, teachers and paraprofessionals have been trained to conduct trial-based FAs with high fidelity (Kunnavatana, Bloom, Samaha, & Dayton, 2013). Behavioral analytic procedures such as video modeling are available to teach these skills to behavior analysts that do not have access to these training. This procedure is effective, well-liked, and can be used remotely. Video modeling may be used to train behavior analysts to conduct trial-based functional analysis remotely, which could …

Interventions To Improve Older Driver Safety, Bernadette A. Fausto

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Increased longevity coupled with age-related declines that compromise driving safety and fragility render older adults as vulnerable road users (Oxley & Whelan, 2008). To address this public health concern, researchers continue to investigate interventions to improve older driver safety. The current dissertation consists of two papers examining: a) the state of the literature on older driver interventions and b) the efficacy of one approach, Useful Field of View cognitive training, to reduce at-fault crash involvement. The first paper sought to identify and quantify the effects of different interventions among older adults on outcomes of crashes, on-road driving performance, self-reported outcomes …

Detecting Digitally Forged Faces In Online Videos, Neilesh Sambhu

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

We use Rossler’s FaceForensics dataset of 1004 online videos and their corresponding forged counterparts [1] to investigate the ability to distinguish digitally forged facial images from original images automatically with deep learning. The proposed convolutional neural network is much smaller than the current state-of-the-art solutions. Nevertheless, the network maintains a high level of accuracy (99.6%), all while using the entire FaceForensics dataset and not including any temporal information. We implement majority voting and show the impact on accuracy (99.67%), where only 1 video of 300 is misclassified. We examine why the model misclassified this one video. In terms of tuning …

A Study On The Influence Of Instructional Mentors On Novice Teachers In High-Needs Schools, Dodi Palkovic Davenport

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Within the first five years of new teachers’ employment, between 30 and 50 percent leave the profession (Smith &Ingersoll, 2004). High levels of teacher attrition are associated with negative effects on student achievement (Strong, 2005). In an effort to retain teachers and improve the quality of the teaching workforce, many states and local school districts require new teachers to enroll in induction and mentoring programs. This study is part of a larger program evaluation of one public school district’s new teacher induction program. The purpose of this investigation was to determine how a novice teacher perceives the influence of a …

Evaluating The Evidence Base For Evidence-Based Instructional Practices In Chemistry Through Meta-Analysis, Md Tawabur Rahman

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Investigating the effectiveness of instructional practices provides an evidence base to inform instructional decisions. Synthesizing research studies on instructional effectiveness provides an estimate of the generalizability of effectiveness across settings, along with an exploration of factors that may moderate the impact, which cannot be achieved within individual studies. This study sought to provide a synthesis of evidence- based instructional practices (EBIPs) particular to chemistry through meta-analysis. 99 studies were analyzed comprising a broader view of chemistry specific studies than past meta-analyses. The results showed that EBIPs feature a demonstrably positive impact on students’ academic performance in chemistry, although assessment topic …

Digital Corpus Use In Learning L2 Prepositional Collocations: A Pilot Study, Matthew A. Siegel

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Because of their prevalence in both spoken and written English, collocations—words that go together—are important for the English language learner. Collocations that contain prepositions have been shown to pose particular difficulty (Hong, Rahim, Hua, & Salehuddin, 2011). Collocational errors are common, even among advanced learners (Laufer & Waldman, 2011). The purpose of this pilot study was three-fold: (1) to determine whether the use of a digital corpus by English language learners is effective in learning prepositional collocations, (2) to determine if proficiency level exerts any influence on effectiveness of using a digital corpus to learn prepositional collocations, and (3) to …

A Quiet Valley At Roztoky: Testimony Of Singularity In The Landscape Imagery Of Zdenka Braunerová, Zdislava Ungrova

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Although Czech artist Zdenka Braunerova (1858-1934) has been recognized by scholars for her contributions to the Czech cultural scene, thorough visual analyses of her artworks are rare. By investigating a single landscape painting, A Quiet Valley at Roztoky, and placing it into the visual and contextual frame of its creation, this thesis thus approaches Braunerova’s artistic oeuvre in an uncommon way. I argue that if understood within its social, cultural and historical context, the painting transcends the purely optic qualities of a landscape genre and acquires instead the self-referencing character of a self-representation.

By subjecting the chosen painting to a …