Digital Commons Network^™

Sexy Sensationalism Case Study: The Fascination With Celebrity News And Why Usa Today Caters To The Obsession, Grant Edward Boxleitner

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In the digital age where newspapers compete with the Internet, cable TV and other publications for an audience, USA Today strives to stay relevant in the media with a daily dose of celebrity news. Newspapers continue to lose circulation during a time when the fascination with celebrities shows no signs of dwindling. This study explores how much celebrity news coverage USA Today gives readers, how much competition from other outlets plays a factor and whether the nation's largest newspaper is making a sacrifice of traditional forms of newspaper content in favor of celebrity coverage. The methodology for this qualitative case …

I'M Not Who I Was Then, Now: Performing Identity In Girl Cams And Blogs, Katherine Bzura

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The task of documenting the evolution of the self over time has been attempted by women artists throughout history. The practice of this documentation has been greatly enhanced in the last several years by the progression of new technologies for the capture of digital images, the advent of the internet as a common textual and visual communication device, and the availability of free resources to publish and disseminate the resulting constructions. Women artists now have the tools needed to document the life of the self, and to publish it immediately to an audience.

Most of the women documenting their lives …

Hurricane Forecasting, Warning And Response Systems: A Lake Wales Public Perception Study, April E. Raulerson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This research investigates the public perception of hurricane forecasting and warning systems with a view to improving response activities. The hazard literature shows that the effectiveness of such systems is contingent upon on the smooth operation of all components of the system and that warning recipients fully understand the implications of the warning message by taking appropriate action. It is argued that public perception of warning systems will vary depending on various socio-demographic factors, such as age, gender, level of education, socioeconomic status and area, factors that will ultimately influence overall effectiveness. To test this, a questionnaire survey was undertaken …

The Influence Of Dialect On The Perception Of Final Consonant Voicing, Stacy Nicole Kile

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Children at risk for reading problems also have difficulty perceiving critical

differences in speech sounds (Breier et al., 2004; Edwards, Fox, & Rogers, 2003; de-

Gelder & Vroomen, 1998). These children rely more heavily on context than the acoustic

qualities of sound to facilitate word reading. Dialect use, such as African American

English (AAE) may influence literacy development in similar ways. Dialect use has been

shown to affect speech sound processing and can even result in spelling errors (Kohler, et

al., in press). The purpose of this study is to determine if children who speak AAE

process cues indicative of …

Government Public Relations: A Quantitative Assessment Of Government Public Relations Practitioner Roles And Public Relations Model Usage, Joelle Wiley Castelli

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study attempts to identify how public relations are practiced in local governments. Traditional literature has stated that the public information model of public relations is the model of public relations practiced in local governments. This study also attempts to determine which roles are most common for lead communicators in municipal organizations governments. Based on Internet survey research methods, research findings indicated that while most practitioners stated they practiced a two-way communications model, they had the most expertise in the public information and press agentry models. The researcher also found that the role most often held by the highest ranking …

The Role Of Computer-Mediated Communication In Non-Native Speakers’ Acquisition Of Academic Literacy, Rui Cheng

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Research shows that academic literacy is discipline specific. Students have to learning the ways of communication in order to gain access to the discourse community of the selected discipline through understanding and performing required genres and learning necessary disciplinary knowledge. Scaffolding is important in the process to help students internalize the disciplinary knowledge and improve students' performance on academic papers. Computer-mediated communication (CMC) provides good chances of scaffolding and mediation especially for non-native graduate students who may have lost many opportunities of class participation due to their limited language proficiency or other cultural issues.

In this dissertation, the researcher investigated …

An Unexplored Realm In The Heartland Of The Southern Gulf Olmec: Investigations At El Marquesillo, Veracruz, Mexico, Travis F. Doering

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines El Marquesillo, a settlement in an archaeologically unexplored region of the Southern Gulf Lowlands of Veracruz, Mexico. Evidence suggests the site has been consistently occupied from the Early Formative period (c. 1500 BC) to the present. Thus, this investigation presents an opportunity to re-examine the sociopolitical continuum encompassing the Olmec cultural phenomenon (c. 1150-300 BC), the emergence of which has been used repeatedly as an example of incipient social complexity.

Theorists have portrayed the development of sociopolitical complexity as a mosaic process in which environmental, social, political, economic, ideological, and demographic variables act independently or in combination …

The Constructions Of Fay Weldon, Woman Of Letters, Harriet Blymiller

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Contemporary British novelist Fay Weldon negotiates the postmodern "culture industry" as the self-conscious heir to a traditon of women writers dating back to the Middle Ages. Like her predecessors, Weldon defensively and offensively negotiates ideological constructions of womanhood, including injunctions to chastity, modesty, and silence; prohibitions against formal education for women; disdain for the literary production and commercial success of women writers; and the application of double standards in the critical reception of their works. Modernizing the strategies traditionally deployed by women writers, Weldon engages with the advertising industry and the mass-oriented literature of radio and television, using them to …

Queer Identity? Discussing Identity And Appearance In An On-Line “Genderqueer” Community, Sharla N. Alegria

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The relatively new field of Queer Theory creates ways of thinking about people living without binary gender, but does not provide for a research model with which to give context to the material struggles of such people. Through the use of Internet discussion groups, the current research project attempts to examine the challenges that people who identify with the concept "genderqueer" describe facing as they fashion selves in social interactions; a process which inevitably requires consumer goods that typically only allow for heteronormative binary gender. Findings suggest that there are similarities in how respondents came to identify with "genderqueer," but …

The Role Of Ethnic Compatibility In Attitude Formation: Marketing To America’S Diverse Consumers, Cynthia Rodriguez Cano

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study investigates the meaning of advertising through the eyes of the Hispanic consumer and how that meaning is apparent in attitudes and purchase intention. Specifically, the study investigates how ethnic minorities judge print advertisement that feature ethnically diverse models as communication cues. For the first time, data of how minorities evaluate the compatibility of models from different ethnic groups featured together in an advertisement was collected. Qualitative data was collected from Hispanics and typologies of cultural pointers for Hispanics and African-Americans developed. Experimental design, 3x2 within-group analysis, was conducted to test the 14 hypothesized relationships. Finding clearly support the …

Oceanic Interfaces: Investigations Of Biogeochemical Changes Across Nutriclines And Frontal Boundaries, Lori R. Adornato

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Biogeochemical changes across oceanic interfaces, and method development to study such changes, are described in this work. The interfaces studied include the Subtropical Front in the Pacific Ocean and the boundary at the base of the euphotic zone. Both interfaces are characterized by accumulations of phytoplankton, although the forcing functions that result in increased biomass are distinctly different.

The Subtropical Front, located at approximately 30°N in the Pacific Ocean, was detected during a cruise in the summer of 2002 by its diagnostic 34.8 salinity outcrop, in spite of the absence of its associated temperature signature. The front displayed elevated concentrations …

An Investigation Of Community College Students’ Perceptions Of Elements Necessary For Success In Online Study, Jenette Flow

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Previous studies by professionals in education have investigated the elements that are typical of the successful online student. Studies of the elements required for academic success online from the students' point of view, however, are infrequent.

This study investigated student perceptions of those elements necessary for success in online study; whether students believed differences exist between those elements necessary for success in online study and those necessary for success in traditional classes; and what factors students identify as barriers to successful completion of online courses. A comparison was made of the viewpoints of students who had and who had not …

Evaluation Of Taqman Real-Time Pcr For The Detection Of Viable Cryptosporidium Parvum Oocysts In Environmental Water Samples, Melissa A. Cameron

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Cryptosporidium parvum is of growing public health concern due to its ability to survive typical water treatment processes. In order to protect the public from infection, the Environmental Protection Agency developed Method 1623 for the detection of Cryptosporidium oocysts in environmental water samples. Execution of this method is time consuming, and the results do not provide an accurate estimation of viability. Therefore, current research is focused on creating a real-time PCR method for the accurate detection of viable Cryptosporidium parvum in environmental water samples.

This thesis presents the development of a real-time PCR method, and the results obtained in its …

Palabra Inédita Género, Raza, E Identidad: Estrategias De La Memoria Cultural En La Poesía De Georgina Herrera, Nancy Morejón, Y Excilia Saldaña, Lissette Corsa

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

En esta tesis analizaré en la poesía de Georgina Herrera, Nancy Morejón y Excilia

Saldaña

1 los conceptos de género y raza y cómo han sido apropiados del esquema

patriarcal y redefinidos en la elaboración de identidad y nación a través de lo que Flora

González Mandri y Catherine Davies han llamado la memoria cultural.

Mi propósito es demostrar como dichas poetas han subvertido, a través de la

palabra, un discurso historicamente maniqueísta que ha servido para reafirmar la doble

subyugación de raza y género, como también exploro los resortes de auto-inscripción y el

imaginario mítico-cultural que cada poeta emplea …

Channel, Spectrum, And Waveform Awareness In Ofdm-Based Cognitive Radio Systems, Tevfik Yücek

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The radio spectrum is becoming increasingly congested everyday with emerging technologies and with the increasing number of wireless devices. Considering the limited bandwidth availability, accommodating the demand for higher capacity and data rates is a challenging task, requiring innovative technologies that can offer new ways of exploiting the available radio spectrum. Cognitive radio arises to be a tempting solution to the spectral crowding problem by introducing the notion of opportunistic spectrum usage. Because of its attractive features, orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) has been successfully used in numerous wireless standards and technologies. We believe that OFDM will play an important …

Learning From Biometric Distances: Performance And Security Related Issues In Face Recognition Systems, Pranab Mohanty

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

We present a theory for constructing linear, black box approximations to face recognition algorithms and empirically demonstrate that a surprisingly diverse set of face recognition approaches can be approximated well using a linear model. The construction of the linear model to a face recognition algorithm involves embedding of a training set of face images constrained by the distances between them, as computed by the face recognition algorithm being approximated. We accomplish this embedding by iterative majorization, initialized by classical multi-dimensional scaling (MDS). We empirically demonstrate the adequacy of the linear model using six face recognition algorithms, spanning both template based …

Effect Of Temperature On Copper Chemical Mechanical Planarization, Veera Raghava R Kakireddy

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The effects of different process parameters on tribology and surface defects were studied till date, but there has been a very minimal study to understand the effect of slurry temperature during Copper Chemical Mechanical Polishing (CMP). The surface defects such as dishing, erosion and metal loss amount for more than 50% of the defects that hamper the device yield and mainly the electrical properties during the manufacturing process. In this research, the effect of slurry temperature on tribology, surface defects and electrical properties during copper CMP employing different pad materials and slurries has been explored. Experiments were conducted at different …

Investigation Into Workplace Culture For Medication Error Reporting In Pharmacy, Tamala Lavelle Gulley

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study determined impacts on reported medication errors in pharmacy by analyzing the culture in an undisclosed pharmacy in Florida. SPSS Statistical Software was used to determine the relationship between medication errors and workplace culture. Workplace culture was analyzed by distributing a 43-question culture survey to the pharmacists. There were two treatment groups, Control and Intervention, and the culture survey was two-fold, pre-survey and post-survey, utilizing identical questions to note the difference in a comparative analysis. During the pre-survey, the pharmacists in the Intervention Group received an informational sheet which contained information on a non-punitive culture as well as information …

The Preliminary Impact Of 2001 Florida Tort Reform On Nursing Facility Litigation In One County, Deborah K. Hedgecock

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Since a substantial increase in lawsuits, settlements, jury trial awards, and insurance premiums involving nursing facilities began in the mid 1990s, addressing litigation has been a growing concern for the industry, consumers and their families, insurance carriers, and state and national elected officials. Curbing lawsuit growth has mirrored medical malpractice containment efforts, focusing on the addition of laws to inhibit litigation. The state of Florida initiated such tort reforms along with mandatory increased nursing facility staffing in 2001. Through secondary data analyses, this study examined the initial effects of Florida's tort reform measures. Lawsuits filed (N = 546) against any …

Fabrication: Corporate And Governmental Crime In The Apparel Industry, Danielle Mcgurrin

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this dissertation is to examine both the gendered and racialized nature of workplace risk and compensation in the manufacturing industry of apparel. The author selects this industry because of its low-wage, labor intensive, and "deskilled" work, performed in often unsafe employment environments with minimal governmental regulations and limited unionization. The apparel industry is also characterized by its large percentage of racial and ethnic minorities, especially immigrant employees, that further disadvantage them in terms of communication barriers, threat of deportation, and the multiple and intersecting marginalizations associated with occupying a low-wage, minority and/or immigrant status. The gendered effects …

Philosophy Of New Jazz: Reconstructing Adorno, Dustin Bradley Garlitz

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Theodor W. Adorno, the towering twentieth century German intellectual figure and distinctive musical thinker, was legendary for being over-critical of jazz music. Through a consideration at his admiration for avant-garde chamber and symphonic music, I plan to develop a position that, surprisingly, points towards a theory of unacknowledged acceptance of jazz. The style of jazz that will be the newly constructed musical idiom of admiration for Adorno will be of the heterodox variety. My method of reconstruction will be to interrogate the inconsistencies in Adorno's critical musical writings, and negate such negations with factual evidence of affirmation found in the …

Do You See What I Mean? Measuring Consensus Of Agreement And Understanding Of A National Weather Service Informational Graphic, Lorna M. Geggis

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Media use of hurricane graphics to apprise populations vulnerable to severe weather provides a persuasive demonstration of the importance and complexity of visual communication. Surprisingly little research, however, has explored how audiences interpret weather graphics. This study examined whether the general public and the National Weather Service share a common understanding of selected weather related terms and meaning of a NWS informational graphic. Using a coorientation model, general public responses to a questionnaire were compared to definitions prescribed by the NWS. Additionally, the public were asked questions to measure trust of the NWS as a credible and reliable source of …

The Appeal Of The Underdog: Definition Of The Construct And Implications For The Self, Nadav Goldschmied

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

From politics to sports to business, people are quick to categorize those at a considerable competitive disadvantage as "underdogs." Moreover, there is ample support that most unattached observers do not hesitate to align themselves with underdogs, a phenomenon termed "the underdog effect." While most dictionary definitions state that underdogs are "especially expected to lose," the present investigation argues that people often attribute optimistic qualities to underdogs and the exceeding of expectations. A series of studies was conducted to examine the lay-person definition of what an underdog means, as well as what motivations may play a role in the underdog effect. …

A Paradox Of Diversity: Billions Invested, But Women Still Leave, Rebekah S. Heppner

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In 2005, women made up 46.4 percent of the United States labor force but only 1.6 percent of Fortune 500 CEOs (Catalyst 2006). Although gains have been made since the passage of the Civil Rights Act in 1964, there is clearly something stopping women from equal representation at the top. Since the late 1980s, businesses have spent billions of dollars on initiatives designed to assist them in dealing with the anticipated increase in the "diversity" of their workplaces (Lubove 1997; Stodghill II 1996; Johnston and Packer 1987). Is there potential for diversity initiatives to help women conquer the "glass ceiling?" …

Mathematical Techniques For The Estimation Of The Diffusion Coefficient And Elimination Constant Of Agents In Subcutaneous Tissue, Lawrence T. Hersh

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this work was to develop methods to estimate the diffusion coefficient and elimination constant for dexamethasone in subcutaneous tissue. Solutions to the diffusion equation were found for different conditions relevant to implantation and injection. These solutions were then used as models for measured autoradiography data where the unknown model parameters were the diffusion coefficient and the elimination constant. The diffusion coefficient and elimination constant were then estimated by curve fitting the measured data to these models. Having these estimates would be of practical importance since inflammation surrounding implantable glucose sensors may be controlled through local release of …

The Effects Of Organizational Structure On Faculty Job Performance, Job Satisfaction, And Counterproductive Work Behavior, Stacey R. Kessler

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Organizational researchers focus on group level variables such as organizational climate and organizational structure. The purpose of the current meso-level study is to examine the effects of the structure of an academic department on faculty members' job performance, job satisfaction, and prevalence of counterproductive work behavior (CWB), or harmful behaviors while at work. The sample consisted of 1135 full time faculty members working in 229 academic departments throughout the United States and Canada. Results of the study suggested that faculty members working in a more organically structured department report higher levels of job satisfaction. Additionally, productive faculty members working in …

The Gothic As Counter-Discourse: Mark Twain, Charles Chesnutt And Toni Morrison, Hyejin, Kim

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Revisiting the American Gothic via Julia Kristeva's theory of "the abject" demonstrates how Gothic strategies expose the historical contradictions of race in works by Mark Twain, Charles W. Chesnutt, and Toni Morrison. As theorized by Kristeva in Powers of Horror, the archaic process in which the subject attempts to constitute itself as homogeneous by casting off or "abjecting" all that cannot be assimilated to the self-same necessarily opens the way to repeated returns of the abject(ed) and the "horror" it provokes. Because the Gothic enacts the return of the abject, it was itself abjected from the literary canon until recently. …

Comparative Effects Of The Toxic Dinoflagellate, Karenia Brevis, On Bivalve Molluscs From Florida, James R. Leverone

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The effects of the toxic dinoflagellate, karenia brevis (Wilson clone), on larval survival and development of the northern quahog (=hard clam, Mercenaria mercenaria), eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica) and bay scallop (Argopecten irradians) were studied in the laboratory. The effects of K. brevis on feeding activities of juveniles from these species plus the green mussel (Perna viridis) were also examined. Finally, adult bay scallops were exposed to K. brevis for two weeks to investigate possible cytotoxic effects. Survival of 3-day-old larvae was generally > 85% for all shellfish species at Karenia brevis densities of 100 cells . ml-1 or less, and not …

The Role Of Alternative Press In Mobilization For Political Change In Kenya 1982-1992 Society Magazine As A Case Study, Pius M. Nyamora

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of alternative press in mobilizing Kenyans to regain a multi-party political system after 29 years of one-party rule that had turned into authoritarianism. The study focused on Society magazine, and touched on two other magazines, Finance and Nairobi Law Monthly. Unlike Society, these magazines were not intended to cover politics, although they changed their role later. Finance and Nairobi Law Monthly were examined through secondary sources and the author's interactions with the publishers. Whereas Society was a weekly founded and run by journalists, Finance and Nairobi Law Monthly were monthlies …

Real Challenges, Virtual Challengers: The Democracy For America Movement, Noah Porter

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The project examines the effects of Internet use by the social movement organization (SMO) Dean for America/Democracy for America (DFA). This study describes the relationship between Internet usage and SMO beliefs, organization, causes, reasons for joining, strategies, reactions, and effects. Dean for America started out with few resources or supporters, and was seen as an unlikely contender for the 2004 presidential campaign. From its humble beginnings, it skyrocketed from being virtually unknown to frontrunner status in the span of a year. After Howard Dean withdrew from the race in February 2004, Dean for America transformed itself into Democracy for America, …