Digital Commons Network^™

The Development Of Aapeptides, Lulu Wei

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Non-natural peptide mimics are referred to as peptidomimetics, which contains unnatural backbones that mimic the primary peptide structure. There are a large number of peptidomimetics that have been developed including α-peptides, β-peptides, peptoids, arylamide oligomers, cationic polymers, and other peptidomimetics in the last decades. Compared to conventional peptides, these peptidomimetics have many advantages such as resistance to proteolysis, improved bioavailability, and reduced immunogenicity. However, the development of peptidomimetics is still far below the expectation due to the limitation of the availability of backbones. It is an urgent need to generate a new diverse library for novel drug discovery, design antimicrobial …

Analytical Methods And Critical Analyses Supporting Thermodynamically Consistent Characterizations Of The Marine Co2 System, Jonathan D. Sharp

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Chemical equilibria describing the unique behavior of gaseous and ionic forms of dissolved carbon dioxide (CO₂) in seawater comprise what is known as the marine CO₂ (or carbonate) system. Observations of the marine CO₂ system with high degrees of accuracy, reproducibility, spatial coverage, and temporal resolution are critical for evaluating natural cycles of carbon within the Earth system, as well as chemical and biological responses to anthropogenic CO₂ emissions.

One component of the CO₂ system is the carbonate ion (CO²−₃), a dissolved ion that is produced when carbonic acid (H …

Fostering Success Through Coaching: Perspectives Of Help Seeking Within A Coaching Relationship With Post-Secondary Students From Foster Care, Jamie L. Bennett

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Coaching, a humanistic approach to growth, has recently been utilized on college campuses as an alternative to standard student service strategies to address the needs of students from foster care. For this dissertation, I have collected interview data from four coaches and five college students who had spent time in the foster care system to explore the perceptions of help-seeking behaviors and coaching within a campus-based university program. The goal was to understand the role of coaching in the students’ help-seeking behaviors. The theories of self-determination and survivalist self-reliance were used to conceptualize my literature review, research design, and data …

Feasting On Words: What University Students Learn When They Study Food Writing And Food Media, Janet K. Keeler

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The use of food in college curriculum is unique in its ability to create lasting impact because of the keen interest millennial and Generation Z students have in what they eat and drink. Studying media with food at its core is an underutilized mechanism to show how food intersects with the lives of all people thus encouraging students to look beyond their own experiences to consider the wider society. A program evaluation of 10 semesters of food writing and food media courses at a Florida public university reveals the ways in which students make deeper connections to culture and current …

Digital Identity: A Human-Centered Risk Awareness Study, Toufic N. Chebib

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Cybersecurity threats and compromises have been at the epicenter of media attention; their risk and effect on people’s digital identity is something not to be taken lightly. Though cyber threats have affected a great number of people in all age groups, this study focuses on 55 to 75-year-olds, as this age group is close to retirement or already retired. Therefore, a notable compromise impacting their digital identity can have a major impact on their life.

To help guide this study, the following research question was formulated, “What are the risk perceptions of individuals, between the ages of 55 and 75 …

The Effect Of Hope On The Relationship Between Personal And Disease Characteristics And Anxiety And Depression In Adolescents And Young Adults With Cancer, Sharon B. Mcneil

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with cancer face physical, psychosocial, emotional, and developmental challenges that are unique to their age group. In facing the crisis of a cancer diagnosis, both social support and hope have been shown to be tools utilized by some AYAs. However, AYAs have higher rates of anxiety and depression than in older adults which may have an effect on their levels of hope.

This cross-sectional study examined the mechanistic effects of hope on the relationship between personal characteristics of age, gender, and social support, the disease characteristics of type of cancer and length of time since …

Multifunctional Metal-Organic Frameworks (Mofs) For Applications In Sustainability, Gaurav Verma

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Climate change, affordable and clean energy, and responsible consumption and production are some of the important goals to be achieved for sustainable development. The current technologies used to address these challenges are energy and resource intensive. Furthermore, there are various limitations related to cost, storage, scalability and safety.Adsorbent materials are seen as a promising alternative remediation system due to their low energy consumption and minimal chemical waste production. However, most of the traditional adsorbents, such as activated carbon and zeolites lack the structural tunability to have long-term effectiveness and their use is limited. As discussed in Chapter 1, metal organic-frameworks …

The Use Of Spanish Moss As A Biological Indicator To Examine Relationships Between Metal Air Pollution, Vegetation Cover, And Environmental Equity In Tampa, Florida, Yousif Abdullah

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Studies of inequality in exposure to less common air pollutants, like metals, are often limited by the costs of high spatial resolution measurements. Spanish moss (Tillandsia usneoides) is a promising bioindicator for measuring air pollution due to its lower cost, enabling capture of time-average environmental concentrations at high spatial resolution. This study had three major aims. First, I aimed to use Spanish moss as a bioindicator to characterize ambient concentrations of selected metals (Ti, Cr, Mn, Co, Ni, Cd, Hg, Pb, As, and Sb) in Tampa, Florida. My second goal was to determine the impact of vegetation cover on metals …

Chinese International Students’ Narratives Of Their Experiences In A Graduate Pathway Program: An Exploratory Study, Lu Norstrand

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Because of the tremendous growth of Chinese international students’ enrollment in American higher education and the rapid rise and development of Pathway programs in American universities, I determined the main purpose of this research was to determine the experiences of three Chinese international students in a Graduate Pathway program at a public four-year university in the Southeastern U.S. Three research questions were addressed:

1. How do three Chinese international students describe their academic experiences in a Graduate Pathway program in the U.S.?
2. How do these students describe differences in their learning experiences between the U.S. and China?
3. How do these students …

The Efficiency And Accuracy Of Yolo For Neonate Face Detection In The Clinical Setting, Jacqueline Hausmann

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

There are many face detection classification models available for download and use in the modern technological world. Based in the field of deep neural networks, these off-the-shelf solutions are generally inadequate to solve real world challenges. This work presents how current approaches biased towards detecting adult human faces must be modified in order to better accommodate face detection of the neonate in a NICU setting.

YOLO is a powerful object detection algorithm. Due to optimizations such as Cross mini-batch Normalization, Modified Spatial Attention Modules, Modified Path Aggregation Networks, Self-Adversarial Training, Mosaic Data Augmentation, DropBox Regularization, Multi-Input Weighted Residual Connections and …

Architecture Design And Optimization Of Edge-Enabled Smart Grids, Adetola B. Adeniran

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The emergence of modern monitoring, communication, computation, and controlequipment into power systems has made them evolve into smart grids that can be thought of as the electric grid of things. This evolution has enhanced the efficiency of the power systems through the availability of a large volume of system data that can help with system functions, nevertheless, it has intensified the communication and computation burden on these systems. While many of such computations were traditionally deployed in central servers, new technologies such as edge computing can provide unique opportunities to address some of the computational challenges and improve the responsiveness …

Use Of Sugarcane Bagasse Ash As Partial Cement Replacement In Interlocking Stabilized Soil Blocks (Issbs), Adah Shair

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Global infrastructure needs for adequate housing, water provision and improved sanitation are on the rise. UN-Water estimates that 1 in 3 people still lack access to safe drinking water and about 4.2 billion people across the globe lack access to safely managed sanitation services. Rapid urbanization and the global refugee crisis have also increased the demand for adequate and efficient housing. UN Sustainable Development Goals cannot be achieved until these needs are met. Given the high environmental impact and cost of cement-heavy construction, alternate construction techniques like appropriate earth technologies need to be adopted. Interlocking stabilized soil blocks (ISSBs), a …

Applying The Situational Theory Of Publics To Children's Sex Education In China, Baoyi Zeng

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In China, "sex" is a sensitive, even taboo topic. In this special cultural background, the lack of sex education for children is worthy of attention. This study aims to extend the Situational Theory of Public (STP) to the field of sex education for children. The results of an online questionnaire survey among 424 Chinese parents show that a high degree of problem recognition and high level of participation in child sex education will lead Chinese parents to actively search for relevant information on this issue. Being able to identify children's sex education problems, having a low barrier to solving the …

Using The Cipp Evaluation Model To Examine A Bachelor Of Science In Health Systems Management Program, Somer Goad Burke

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this formative evaluation was to explore the effectiveness of a Bachelor of Science in Health Systems Management (BS HSMT) program in supporting student success through gathering information that led to recommendations for program improvement. The evaluation setting was a public university in the southeastern United States that began enrolling students in the BS HSMT in the fall semester 2017. The BS HSMT was developed to meet the local workforce need for professionals trained in health management and to offer a non-clinical bachelor’s degree for students not competitive or not admitted to their first-choice selective major (described in …

Succession In Native Groundwater Microbial Communities In Response To Effluent Wastewater, Chelsea M. Dinon

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Aquifer storage and recovery techniques are used globally to mitigate increasing demands for groundwater. Microcosms were used to evaluate the effect of wastewater effluent that may be used for aquifer storage and recovery injection on native aquifer microbial communities. Sulfur Springs water was used as the source of aquifer water. The microcosms were 100% spring water, 100% unchlorinated filtered wastewater effluent, or one of three mixtures of unchlorinated filtered wastewater effluent and spring water. The mixture microcosms were 50%, 30%, and 10% unchlorinated filtered wastewater effluent with the balance as spring water. The effluent water was UV treated prior to …

Biomechanics Of Independent Wheelchair Transfer In Individuals With Spinal Cord Injury, Ashleigh L. Fults

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

AbstractIndividuals with a low level spinal cord injury (SCI) at T1 or below must use a wheelchair for mobility and in order to accomplish daily activities, such as using a recreational wheelchair for sports. These individuals must transfer into and out of their wheelchair several times a day. It is most beneficial for the individual to complete these transfers independently, without the help of a caretaker or assistive device. It is important that these transfers be successful and safe, because improper technique can result in a serious injury from a fall or by repeated small damage to the arms and …

Identifying The Academic And Emotional Risk And Resource Factors Of Underrepresented Students In Accelerated Coursework, Jasmine L. Gray

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

There are many benefits of student participation in accelerated curricula in high school such as the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program (IBD) or Advanced Placement (AP) coursework. Benefits include skipping introductory coursework in college, being better prepared to deal with the stressors of college, and positive impacts on peer relationships, self-image, and the development of the concept of success (The International Baccalaureate Organization [IBO], 2019). However, the extent to which all students, regardless of demographic background, are able to participate in and benefit from such programs is a little less known. Previous research indicates that the IBD tends to enroll high-achieving …

Honokiol Loaded Mpeg-Pcl Micelles For The Treatment Of Age-Related Macular Degeneration, Amna Shahid

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Age related Macular Degeneration (AMD), a multi-factorial age-related retinal hypoxic disorder resulting in irreversible loss of vision is the foremost cause of blindness in United States. Current treatment strategies used to treat disease involve multiple intraocular injections of Anti – VEGF agents into the vitreous of eye. In addition to the issues of drug localization and targeted delivery, the need to frequently inject drug into the eye raise patient compliance issues. These challenges call for sustained drug delivery system. In this study, a sustained drug delivery system was prepared by loading an anti- HIF agent, honokiol into MPEG-PCL polymer. These …

The Quantification Of Heavy Metals In Infant Formulas Offered By The Florida Wic Program, Naya Martin

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Many infants rely on the WIC program to provide their main source of sustenance in theform of infant formula. In 2016, about 86% of the eligible infant population participated in this program. Infants in Florida account for about 30% of participation in the Southeast. For this reason, it is necessary to ensure that the formulas offered by this program provide the best opportunity for an optimal health outcome.

Exposure to heavy metals can have detrimental effects on the development of infants and children. Arsenic, lead, and cadmium specifically have been commonly found in certain types of infant formulas. Significant exposures …

Hepatobiliary Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons In Pelagic Fishes Of The Gulf Of Mexico, Madison R. Schwaab

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Fisheries populations and their ecosystems are negatively impacted by both chronic and acute inputs of pollutants, including oil spills such as the Deepwater Horizon platform blowout in 2010 in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM). After Deepwater Horizon, toxicological studies of demersal fishes of the northern GoM were undertaken to characterize impacts and to establish baseline contaminant levels in the aftermath of the spill. In this study, I quantify polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) concentrations in eight pelagic fish species to demonstrate oil exposure differences between species, region and time. Analysis of biliary PAH metabolite equivalents using high performance liquid chromatography was …

Longitudinal Examination Of A Dual-Factor Model Of Mental Health: Academic Adjustment And Stability Of Group Membership In High School Students In Academically Accelerated Curricula, Letty Langton Dileo

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Middle adolescence (ages 14 to 18 years old) has been associated with declines in both psychopathology and subjective well-being (SWB). This study examined a dual-factor model (DFM) of mental health, which conceptualizes complete mental health as including both low levels of psychopathology and high levels of SWB, across three time points, each 9-12 months apart, in a sample of 328 9th grade students enrolled in accelerated coursework. This study aimed to determine (1) the stability of students’ mental health status over time, (2) the role of psychopathology versus SWB for students who changed mental health status, and (3) the relationship …

Motivation To Volunteer, Lendi N. Joy

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The rate of volunteering in the U.S. remains low in spite of the many positive benefits that volunteering yields. Prior research has suggested various theories to help explain motivation to volunteer. Nonetheless, none of the theories have been both comprehensive and specific enough to allow for their practical application in recruitment efforts or campaigns to increase motivations to volunteer. The purpose of the current study was to test a comprehensive model of volunteer motivation by integrating the Volunteering Functions Inventory into the Theory of Planned Behavior as behavioral and normative beliefs that influence attitudes and subjective norms. The hypothesized model …

Latino/A Student Success In Higher Education: A Study In Persistence, Ronald K. Maccammon

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative study was to provide a detailed accounting of the experiences of Latinos students who persist in higher education. The supports and barriers they encountered, as well as their recommendations for educational stakeholders looking to effect persistence were examined. The grand tour question guiding this research was: “What do some Latino students and their institutions do to enable decisions to persist and how do they do it?” Sub-Questions providing depth for the research were: (a) how do the participants make meaning of their experiences to persist to graduate; (b) what are the participants’ perceptions of the …

Why Are Women Leaving Stem? An Examination Of Workplace Rivalry, Joseph Regina

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Past research on workplace rivalry has framed the construct as a motivating force that is desirable for individuals and organizations. Using social comparison theory as a framework, the potential harmful correlates of rivalry were examined. Specifically, the relationships between the status of having a rival, as well as one’s perception of their relative standing to (i.e. being better or worse than) their rival, and the outcomes of turnover intention, perceived competence, and imposter syndrome were analyzed. Further, to examine how STEM fields may be particularly impacted by these relationships, both job and STEM turnover were measured, and the moderating effect …

Immune Modulation As A Therapeutic Target In An Α-Synuclein Model Of Parkinson’S Disease, Meena Subhashini Subbarayan

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder affecting about 1.5 million people in the United States with more than 60,000 people diagnosed each year. It is classically characterized by four major symptoms: tremor, postural instability, stiffness in joints, and slow movement (bradykinesia). Pathologically PD is characterized by up to 70% loss of dopaminergic neurons in substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc) of midbrain and accumulation of presynaptic protein called α-synuclein (α-syn) within dopaminergic neurons that extend to the striatum. This disrupts the nigrostriatal pathway leading to the motor symptoms seen in PD patients. Microglia, the innate immune cells …

Diagnosis Of Freeway Bottlenecks During The Mass Evacuation For Hurricane Irma On Florida's Turnpike Mainline, Brian Michael Staes

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Prevailing traffic conditions were examined for a bottleneck that occurred on northbound SR-91 (Florida’s Mainline Turnpike) during the mass evacuation for Hurricane Irma in September 2017. Radar detector count, occupancy, and speed data polling at 1-minute intervals were collected from the Regional Integrated Transportation Information System (RITIS) and employed to identify the distinct periods one particular bottleneck was active at a service plaza along SR-91. With this rich data, three distinct periods were identified in which the bottleneck was active at a service plaza off-ramp, lasting a total of 27.5 hours during this colossal evacuation. To identify the activation time …

A Review Of American College Campus Tobacco Or Smoke Free Policies: A Case Study Of A Large Urban University, Sarah E. Powell

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Objective: A year after a tobacco free policy was passed, the University of South Florida (USF) was interested in the overall policy opinions and efficacy. To assess this a project was completed that included a survey and geospatial data. The survey measured tobacco policy enforcement behavior and a geographic information system (GIS) mapped tobacco policy violation. This project introduces an evaluation process that can efficiently assess an institutions tobacco-free policy. Methods: Using a cross-sectional survey sent to students, faculty, and staff, understanding of policy and resources, tobacco use observations, stage of change regarding policy enforcement, self-efficacy to enforce, and perceived …

Physician Self-Efficacy And Risk-Taking Attitudes As Determinants Of Upcoding And Downcoding Errors: An Empirical Investigation, Samantha J. Champagnie

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Physicians across the United States are burdened with the pressure of accurate coding while trying to maintain quality patient care. Despite the economic importance of coding accuracy, investigators have not reached consensus on the factors that contribute to coding errors. This study fills this gap by investigating physician characteristics that explain the variation in physician coding accuracy, specifically evaluation and management upcoding and downcoding errors. An electronic survey was distributed to 325 physicians that measured physicians’ attitudes towards risk and coding self-efficacy. Regression analysis found physicians with low self-efficacy had more conservative coding behaviors, resulting in higher incidences of downcoding. …

Higher Sense Of Control Predicts Long-Term Well-Being After Depression, Andrew R. Devendorf

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Excellent outcomes after major depression, including the possibility of optimal well-being (OWB), are understudied. In a previous investigation, nearly 10% of initially depressed adults met OWB criteria 10-years later, yet little is known about factors that explain OWB after depression. This study examined whether sense of control (SOC) beliefs and coping behaviors, specifically, reappraisal and seeking social support, predict OWB after depression. Secondary data analyses were conducted on Waves 1 and 2 of the Midlife Development in the United States (1995–1996; 2004–2006; MIDUS) study, which includes a nationally representative sample of middle-aged adults. Participants in the present analyses met DSM-III …

Humanistic Climate Philosophy: Erich Fromm Revisited, Nicholas Dovellos

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Given the current juncture in history, humanity is faced with the herculean task of adapting to a tumultuous present and a gimmer future. Should climate projections be accurate, there is little time to waste. This work makes the claim that we are not only in a political gridlock but also in an academic one. Researching climate philosophy from its inception, the concluding view is that no major progress, outside of a standardized descriptive analysis, has been achieved. Thus, the work evaluates an array of climate philosophers e.g. Stephen Gardiner, James Garvey, Peter Singer, Walter Sinnott-Armstrong, etc., with specific emphasis on …