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Towards Regenerative Development: A Methodology For University Campuses To Become More Sustainable, With A Focus On The University Of South Florida, Richard Keirs Mcdonald Iii

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The administrations of several universities have developed strategies to reduce the negative environmental effects created by their institutions. Because no single, comprehensive methodology to guide institutions to sustainability exists, these strategies range widely in scope. As well, the definition of "sustainability" differs for these various institutions, resulting in strategies ranging from small-scale recycling programs to major initiatives to incorporate green building and revamping curricula. This study attempts to create the first comprehensive methodology to guide university campuses and processes to become regenerative. Regenerative systems "produce more resources than needed, provide resources for other projects, and enhance [the] environment" (Bernheim 2003), …

Advances In Magnetic Resonance Electrical Impedance Mammography, Nataliya Kovalchuk

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Magnetic Resonance Electrical Impedance Mammography (MREIM) is a new imaging technique under development by Wollin Ventures, Inc. in conjunction with the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute. MREIM addresses the problem of low specificity of magnetic resonance mammography and high false-positive rates, which lead to unnecessary biopsies. Because cancerous tissue has a higher electrical conductivity than benign tissue, it may serve as a biomarker for differentiation between malignant and benign lesions. The MREIM principle is based on measuring both magnetic resonance and electric properties of the breast by adding a quasi-steady-state electric field to the standard magnetic resonance …

Forecasting Models For Economic And Environmental Applications, Shou Hsing Shih

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The object of the present study is to introduce three analytical time series models for the purpose of developing more effective economic and environmental forecasting models, among others. Given a stochastic realization, stationary or nonstationary in nature, one can utilize exciting methodology to develop an autoregressive, moving average or a combination of both for short and long term forecasting. In the present study we analytically modify the stochastic realization utilizing (a) a k-th moving average, (b) a k-th weighted moving average and (c) a k-th exponential weighted moving average processes. Thus, we proceed in developing the appropriate …

Factors Influencing The Perceived Credibility Of Public Relations Message Sources, Titilola O. Epega

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This study establishes a link between research done in the field of public relations on source credibility, communicator gender, message strength, and source affiliation. Research has established that source credibility is one of the most important factors influencing the acceptance of a message. For this study, source credibility was measured using three main dimensions: expertise, trustworthiness and attractiveness. Similar to many studies focusing on source credibility, this study focuses on the various attributes of the communicator or message source. This study uses an experimental procedure to investigate the relationships between source credibility, message strength, source affiliation, and communicator gender. Based …

Surface And Interface Magnetism In Nanostructures And Thin Films, Natalie A. Frey

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Nanostructured systems composed of two or more technologically important materials are useful for device applications and intriguing for the new fundamental physics they may display. Magnetism at the nanoscale is dominated by size and surface effects which combined with other media lead to new spin dynamics and interfacial coupling phenomena. These new properties may prove to be useful for optimizing sensors and devices, increasing storage density for magnetic media, as well as for biomedical applications such as drug delivery, MRI contrast enhancement, and hyperthermia treatment for cancer. In this project we have examined the surface and interface magnetism of composite …

Comparing A Low-Volume Piezometer To Traditional Wells In Evaluating Hydraulic Lag Caused By Low-Permeability Sediments, John M. Spencer

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Traditionally-constructed wells are commonly used to measure hydraulic head in all saturated systems, even in fine-grained sediments. Previous studies (Hvorslev 1951, Penman 1961) have shown that time lag in response to head changes between traditional wells and the surrounding fine-grained sediments can be a significant source of error. Time lag is caused by the time required for water to flow into or out of the well to reflect the appropriate change in head.

A low-volume piezometer was constructed to measure changes in hydraulic head without requiring a change in fluid volume within the piezometer by directly measuring pore pressure in …

Electoral Abuse In The Late Roman Republic, Howard Troxler

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Escalating abuse of elections was a hallmark of the collapse of the Republic that governed at Rome for nearly 500 years before it was swept away and replaced by emperors and Empire. The causes of the Republic's fall are well-explored, but electoral abuse was one of the agencies by which it was brought low - a "how" that helps explain the "why." The abuse of regular electoral form, practiced by all parties, inured the Romans to further and ever-widening abuse. In the end their elections - and the Republic - lost both meaning and independence. This is a controversial claim …

Rb-Raf-1 Interaction As A Therapeutic Target For Proliferative Disorders, Rebecca Kinkade

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The retinoblastoma tumor suppressor protein, Rb, is a key regulator of the mammalian cell cycle and its inactivation facilitates S-phase entry. Rb is inactivated through multiple waves of phosphorylation, mediated mainly by kinases associated with D and E type cyclins in the G1 phase of the cell cycle. Our earlier studies had shown that the signaling kinase Raf-1 (c-Raf) physically interacts with Rb upon growth factor stimulation and initiates the phosphorylation cascade. We had shown that an 8 amino acid peptide derived from Raf-1 could disrupt the Rb-Raf-1 interaction leading to an inhibition of Rb phosphorylation, cell proliferation and tumor …

Dental Hygienists' Beliefs, Norms, Attitudes, And Intentions Toward Treating Hiv/Aids Patients, Barbara Clark-Alexander

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

There is a great demand and need for oral health care during the course of HIV disease (HIV Costs and Services Utilization Study; Marcus et. al., 2005). HIV+ patients identified three key barriers to obtaining oral health treatment: 1) beliefs and attitudes of dental health care providers (DHCPs) may have lead to their unwillingness to treat HIV/AIDS patients; 2) the existence of racial and ethnic disparities in health care in the United States, and 3) how DHCPs perceive their risk of contracting HIV. The fear and stigma associated with treating patients with HIV further compromises their access to care and …

Effects Of U-Turns On Capacity At Signalized Intersections And Simulation Of U-Turning Movement By Synchro, Xiaodong Wang

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The primary objective of this study is to evaluate the operational effects of U-turn movement at signalized intersections. More specifically, the research objectives include the following parts:

• To identify the factors affecting the operational performance of U-turning vehicles. In this case, we are particularly interested in the U-turn speeds of U-turning vehicles.
• To evaluate the impacts of U-turns on capacity of signalized intersections, and
• To simulate U-turn movement at signalized intersections using Synchro and validate the simulation results.

To achieve the research objectives, extensive field data collection work was conducted at sixteen selected sites at Tampa Bay area of Florida. …

Assignment Of Estimated Average Annual Daily Traffic Volumes On All Roads In Florida, Tao Pan

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In the first part, this thesis performed a study to compile and compare current procedures or methodologies for the estimation of traffic volumes on the roads where traffic counts are not easily available. In the second part, linear regression was practiced as an AADT estimation process, which was primarily based on known or accepted AADT values on the neighboring state and local roadways, population densities and other social/economic data.

To develop AADT prediction models for estimating AADT values, two different types of database were created, including a social economic database and a roadway characteristics database. Ten years social economic data, …

Effects Of Zn Doping And High Energy Ball Milling On The Photocatalytic Properties Of Tio2, Paula C. Algarin

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

TiO₂ photocatalysis is been widely studied for air and water purification applications; titanium dioxide is the most used semiconductor principally because its low cost, stability and chemical properties. However it only utilizes the UV portion of the solar spectrum as an energy source (less than 4% of the total sunlight energy). This behavior is due to its high band gap value of 3.2 eV. The modification of light harvesting properties of TiO₂ by doping has become an important research topic to achieve an efficient operating range under UV and visible light. In addition, the structure and surface properties …

Modeling The Impacts Of An Employer Based Travel Demand Management Program On Commute Travel Behavior, Liren Zhou

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Travel demand Management (TDM) focuses on improving the efficiency of the transportation system through changing traveler's travel behavior rather than expanding the infrastructure. An employer based integrated TDM program generally includes strategies designed to change the commuter's travel behavior in terms of mode choice, time choice and travel frequency. Research on TDM has focused on the evaluation of the effectiveness of TDM program to report progress and find effective strategies. Another research area, identified as high-priority research need by TRB TDM innovation and research symposium 1994 [Transportation Research Circular, 1994], is to develop tools to predict the impact of TDM …

Modeling Crash Severity And Speed Profile At Roadway Work Zones, Zhenyu Wang

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Work zone tends to cause hazardous conditions for drivers and construction workers since work zones generate conflicts between construction activities and the traffic, therefore aggravate the existing traffic conditions and result in severe traffic safety and operational problems. To address the influence of various factors on the crash severity is beneficial to understand the characteristics of work zone crashes. The understanding can be used to select proper countermeasures for reducing the crash severity at work zones and improving work zone safety. In this dissertation, crash severity models were developed to explore the factor impacts on crash severity for two work …

An Electromechanical Synchronization Of Driving Simulator And Adaptive Driving Aide For Training Persons With Disabilities, Rufael Berhane

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Cars have become necessities of our daily life and are especially important to people with disability because they extend their range of activity and allow participation in a social life.

Sometimes driving a normal car is impossible for individuals with severe disability and they require additional driving aide. However, it is dangerous to send these individuals on the road without giving them special training on driving vehicles using an adaptive aide.

Nowadays there are a number of driving simulators that train disabled persons but none of them have joystick-enabled training that controls both steering, gas and break pedal. This necessitates …

Analysis And Optimization Of Empirical Path Loss Models And Shadowing Effects For The Tampa Bay Area In The 2.6 Ghz Band, Julio C. Costa

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis analyzes the wireless propagation modeling of a 2.6 GHz band channel around the Tampa Bay area. Different empirical models are compared against measured data, and an adapted model, specific for the Tampa Bay area, is presented that builds on the accuracy of existing models. The effects of the propagation characteristics along bridges are also discussed, and a two-slope model is presented. The proposed models are based on a simple linear regression method, and statistical tests are evaluated for reliability thereof. The analysis also investigates the statistical properties of shadowing effects imposed on the wireless channel. The spatial correlation …

An Approach To Designing An Unmanned Helicopter Autopilot Using Genetic Algorithms And Simulated Annealing, Namir Aldawoodi

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation investigates the application of Genetic Algorithms (GA) and Simulated Annealing (SA) based search techniques to the problem of deriving an auto-pilot that can emulate a human operator or other controller flying a Small unmanned Helicopter (SH). A Helicopter is a type of Vertical Take Off and Landing Vehicle (VTOL). The maneuvers are none aggressive, mild maneuvers, that include u-turns, ascending spirals and other none extreme flight paths.

The pilot of the helicopter is a Fuzzy logic Controller (FC) pilot; it is assumed that the pilot executes the maneuvers with skill and precision. The FC pilot is given set- …

The Study Of Compensatory Motions While Using A Transradial Prosthesis, Stephanie Lutton Carey

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Improvement of prostheses requires knowledge of how the body adapts. A transradial prosthesis without a dynamic wrist component may cause awkward compensatory motion leading to fatigue, injury or rejection of the prosthesis. This work analyzed the movements of shoulder, elbow and torso during four tasks: drinking from a cup, opening a door, lifting a box and turning a steering wheel.

The main purpose of this study was to determine if using a basic transradial prosthesis that lacks motion of the forearm and wrist would cause significant compensatory motion of the shoulder, elbow and torso during the tasks. The second purpose …

A Framework For Evaluating The Computational Aspects Of Mobile Phones, David Pedro Aguilar

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

With sales reaching $4.4 billion dollars in the first half of 2006 in the United States alone, and an estimated 80% of the world receiving coverage for their wireless phones in that year, interest in these devices as more than mere communicators has greatly increased. In the mid-to-late 1990s, digital cameras began to be incorporated into cellphones, followed shortly thereafter by Global Positioning System (GPS) hardware allowing location-based services to be offered to customers. Since then the use of mobile phone hardware for non-communication purposes has continued to expand. Some models, such as the Motorola V3M, have been specifically geared …

Analysis Of Capillary Forces In Electrowetting And Precision Self Assembly, Vivek Ramadoss

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Developments in micro and nano technology have great potential in many applications. Two applications that will be addressed in this work are self assembly of microdevices and Electrowetting in microfluidics. Capillary forces are the most critical factor in both of these techniques and need proper characterization. This thesis describes a detailed study of these forces and explains how they were utilized as an effective source of drive in high end applications.

Self assembly is a promising alternative to conventional pick and place robotic assembly of micro components. Its benefits include parallel integration of parts with low equipment costs. Various approaches …

Discrete Event System Modeling Of Demand Responsive Transportation Systems Operating In Real Time, Daniel Y. Yankov

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Demand responsive transportation is a variable route service of passengers or freight from specific origin(s) to destination(s) in response to the request of users. Operational planning of DRT system encompasses the methods to provide efficient service to the passengers and to the system operators. These methods cover the assignments of vehicles to transportation requests and vehicle routings under various constraints such as environmental conditions, traffic and service limitations. Advances in the information and communication technologies, such as the Internet, mobile communication devices, GIS, GPS, Intelligent Transportation Systems have led to a significantly complex and highly dynamical decision making environment. Recent …

A Constant Struggle: Renegotiating Identity In The Aftermath Of Rape, Jo Aine Clarke

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The academic study of rape has historically ignored the recovery experience of the person being raped. Beyond medical and physical effects, and the possibility of legal prosecution, little attention has been paid. Existing research loses sight of the survivor's experience, ignoring the fact that a rape affects every aspect of life. The trauma is not only physical, but also impinges on the emotional, intellectual and interpersonal spheres. Rape can be, and often is, a life-threatening experience: one that needs to be faced and dealt with before there can be any sort of productive future. While it has been demonstrated that …

Environmental Effects On Nano-Wear Of Gold And Kbr Single Crystal, Megan Pendergast

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In order to successfully incorporate the tremendous possibilities of nanoscale applications into devices and manufacturing, significant studies need to be conducted of the properties and mechanics of materials of this small scale. In this thesis, the effect of repeated scanning of KBr, aluminum, and gold was studied by using a nanoindenter and Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) in varying environments. Additional research was performed to study the environmental effects of gold film scratching using a Taber Shear/Scratch Tester.

Scanning of KBr single crystal surface in air with a diamond tip in the Hysitron Triboindenter formed surface ripples 100 nm high, 1 …

Dynamic Programming With Multiple Candidates And Its Applications To Sign Language And Hand Gesture Recognition, Ruiduo Yang

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Dynamic programming has been widely used to solve various kinds of optimization problems.In this work, we show that two crucial problems in video-based sign language and gesture recognition systems can be attacked by dynamic programming with additional multiple observations. The first problem occurs at the higher (sentence) level. Movement epenthesis [1] (me), i.e., the necessary but meaningless movement between signs, can result in difficulties in modeling and scalability as the number of signs increases. The second problem occurs at the lower (feature) level. Ambiguity of hand detection and occlusion will propagate errors to the higher level. We construct a novel …

Safety Evaluation Of Freeway Exit Ramps, Hongyun Chen

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The primary objective of the study is to evaluate safety performances of different exit ramps used in Florida and nationally. More specific, the research objectives include the following two parts: (1) to evaluate the impacts of different exit ramp types on safety performance for freeway diverge areas; and (2) to identify the different factors contributing to the crashes happening on the exit ramp sections. To achieve the research objectives, the research team investigated crash history at 424 sites throughout Florida. The study area includes two parts, the freeway diverge area and the exit ramp sections. For the freeway diverge areas, …

Methods Of Thermoelectric Enhancement In Silicon-Germanium Alloy Type I Clathrates And In Nanostructured Lead Chalcogenides, Joshua Martin

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The rapid increase in thermoelectric (TE) materials R&D is a consequence of the growing need to increase energy efficiency and independence through waste heat recovery. TE materials enable the direct solid-state conversion of heat into electricity, with little maintenance, noise, or cost. In addition, these compact devices can be incorporated into existing technologies to increase the overall operating efficiency. High efficiency TE materials would enable the practical solid-state conversion of thermal to electrical energy. Optimizing the interdependent physical parameters to achieve acceptable efficiencies requires materials exhibiting a unique combination of properties. This research reports two methods of thermoelectric enhancement: lattice …

The Interrelatedness Of Homosexual Identity Development And Perceptions Of Campus Climate For Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, And Transgender Students At The University Of South Florida, Tampa Campus, Frederic Drury Baker

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the perceptions of campus climate at the University of South Florida, Tampa Campus for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender students. Specifically, the study determined if there was any relationship between level of homosexual identity development acquired and perceptions of campus climate. If a relationship existed, it would influence the way that campus climate perceptions would be analyzed in future studies.

The population was the undergraduate student body at the University of South Florida taking at least six credit hours in the fall semester 2007. An online survey was created with two instruments …

A Potential Field Based Formation Control Methodology For Robot Swarms, Laura E. Barnes

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A novel methodology is presented for organizing swarms of robots into a formation utilizing artificial potential fields generated from normal and sigmoid functions. These functions construct the surface which swarm members travel on, controlling the overall swarm geometry and the individual member spacing. Nonlinear limiting functions are defined to provide tighter swarm control by modifying and adjusting a set of control variables forcing the swarm to behave according to set constraints, formation and member spacing. The swarm function and limiting functions are combined to control swarm formation, orientation, and swarm movement as a whole. Parameters are chosen based on desired …

Automatic Generation Of Plc Code Based On Net Condition Event Systems, Natalia Sandberg

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

An important consideration in discrete event dynamic systems control theory is the selection of a suitable modeling formalism that can capture the complex characteristics of the system and the capability to automatically synthesize a controller based on the system model. Net condition event systems are well suited for modeling complex discrete event dynamic systems owing to their input and output structure, which effectively captures the behavior of the physical devices to be monitored and/or controlled. To date, net condition event systems control models have not been extensively applied to highly automated manufacturing systems and there are few guidelines on how …

Development Of An Fpga Based Autopilot Hardware Platform For Research And Development Of Autonomous Systems, Wendy Alvis

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Unmanned vehicles, both ground and aerial, have become prevalent in recent years. The research community has different needs than the industrial community when designing a finalized unmanned system since the vehicle, the sensors and the control design are dynamic and change frequently as new ideas are developed and implemented.

Current autopilot hardware, which is available as on-the-market products and proposed in research, is sufficient for unmanned systems design. However, this equipment falls short of being able to accommodate the needs of those in the research community who must be able to quickly implement new ideas on a flexible platform.

The …