Digital Commons Network^™

Distoritonal Buckling Of Cold-Formed Steel Columns, Benjamin W. Schafer

American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) Specifications, Standards, Manuals and Research Reports (1946 - present)

No abstract provided.

The Impact Of A College Wellness Course On Wellness Knowledge, Attitude, And Behavior, Marion L. Askegaard

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if participation in a college wellness course resulted in an improvement in knowledge, attitude, and behavior relating to physical activity, nutrition, and stress management.

Three hundred forty-eight students enrolled in the Wellness course at Concordia College, Moorhead, Minnesota, took The Wellness Knowledge. Attitude, and Behavior Instrument during the first class period (pretest) and last week (posttest) of the course.

Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), with repeated measures on one factor, was conducted to determine whether there would be statistically significant differences between the pretest and posttest wellness knowledge, attitude, and behavior scores. Three-way …

The Effect Of Biculturalism On Depression In Northern Plains Native American College Students, Alan H. Storey Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

The primary purpose of this study was to examine the effect of biculturalism on depression in a propsed sample of 52 Northern Plains Native American College students (32 female, 20 male). This study tested the applicability of the Orthogonal Theory of Biculturalism (Oetting and Beauvais, 1992). Subjects completed the Northern Plains Biculturalism scale (NPBI) and the Beck Depression Inventory-Second edition (BDI-II). A descriptive analysis, Pearson product moment correlational analysis, independent t-tests, and multiple regression analysis were performed. The multiple regression utilized the two-culture orientation subscales of the NPBI as predictor variables and the total score of the BDI-II as outcome …

Children's Understanding Of The Concept Of Physical Activity, Stewart G. Trost, Angela M. Morgan, Ruth P. Saunders, Gwen A. Felton, Dianne S. Ward, Russell R. Pate

Faculty Publications

This study evaluated 4th-grade students' understanding of the concept of physical activity and assessed the effects of two interventions to enhance the students' understanding of this concept. Students were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 conditions: the video group (n=40) watched a 5-min video describing physical activity; the verbal group (n=42) listened to a generic description of physical activity; the control group received no instruction (n=45). Students completed a 17-item checklist testing their understanding of the concept of physical activity. Compared to controls, students in the verbal and video group demonstrated significantly higher checklist …

Assessment And Grading Practices Among High School Band Teachers In The United States: A Descriptive Study, Edward G. Simanton

Theses and Dissertations

The recent movement in academic reform and accountability has brought assessment and grading to the forefront in most academic disciplines. While assessment and grading appear to be important topics in music education professional journals, little is known about actual practice or local satisfaction with current practices. Findings from a few small regional assessment and grading studies indicated that assessment practices tended to diverge from currently understood best practices; for example, attendance was the primary source of grading information.

The purposes of this study were to (a) examine current assessment and grading practices in American high school bands, (b) gauge local …

Faculty Interests - Faculty Needs: Creating Meaningful Critical Thinking Training, Patricia Wilber

Theses and Dissertations

Helping students improve their critical thinking and writing abilities is a challenge for university instructors. Although they are experts in their specific disciplines, most of them struggle when it comes to developing appropriate and successful critical thinking activities for their students. They have limited knowledge of instructional methods that improve student thinking, and often rely on professional development programs on their campuses to assist them. The Writing Across the Curriculum Program at a mid-western university offered assistance to faculty and provided a place to examine this process.

A qualitative study employing workshop observations and follow-up interviews was used to determine …

The Effects Of Rumination And Distraction Tasks On Psychophysiological Responses And Self-Reported Mood In Dysphoric And Nondysphoric Individuals, Kristin S. Vickers Douglas

Theses and Dissertations

According to the response style theory of depression (Nolen-Hoeksema, 1987), the way in which individuals respond to depressed mood affects the severity and duration of that mood. Prior laboratory studies of response style have not included psychophysiological measures or investigated the relationship between ruminative response style and the conceptually-related constructs of worry and neuroticism. Dysphoric (n = 84) and nondysphoric participants (n = 86) were randomly assigned to either a rumination task (i.e., self-focused attention) or a distraction task (i.e., other-focused attention). In addition to the pre-task and post-task mood ratings used in prior response style studies, the present study …

Adults With Autism Speak Out: Perceptions Of Their Life Experiences, Karen S. Hurlbutt

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate and describe the perceptions of three high functioning adults with autism about their life experiences. After a review of the literature, I determined that there is a lack of information regarding adults with autism, especially those at the high end of the spectrum. There is a great deal of information regarding the educational needs of individuals with autism; however, there are few studies available which address the unique needs of the adults. I wondered “What can we learn about adults with autism that we did not know before? What can they tell …

Political Culture And Women's Political Activity In Post Communist Ukraine A Case Study Of The 1994 Elections, Tonja M. Wilt

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

This research identifies and examines two distinct political cultures in post-communist Ukraine, characterized by the presence of Soviet and non-Soviet influences. Soviet political culture is associated with East Ukrainian regions where Soviet policies of Russification, collectivization and urbanization were deeply entrenched. The non-Soviet political culture is present in Western Ukraine where said policies were least successful and the Ukrainian culture is more established.

The question posed in this thesis is: To what extent, if any, do regional political cultures influence women's political activity in Ukraine? This study focuses on the Soviet practice of appointing hundreds of women to the Supreme …

Did Decide Or Should Have Decided: Issue Exhaustion And The Veterans Benefits Appeals Process , Gary E. O'Connor

American University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Review Of The 1999 Patent Law Decisions Of The United States Court Of Appeals For The Federal Circuit , Phil N. Makrogiannis

American University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Review Of The 1999 Trademark Decisions Of The United States Court Of Appeals For The Federal Circuit , Stephen R. Baird

American University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Vibrio Cholerae H-Ns Silences Virulence Gene Expression At Multiple Steps In The Toxr Regulatory Cascade, Melinda B. Nye, James D. Pfau, Karen Skorupski, Ronald K. Taylor

Dartmouth Scholarship

H-NS is an abundant nucleoid-associated protein involved in the maintenance of chromosomal architecture in bacteria. H-NS also has a role in silencing the expression of a variety of environmentally regulated genes during growth under nonpermissive conditions. In this study we demonstrate a role for H-NS in the negative modulation of expression of several genes within the ToxR virulence regulon ofVibrio cholerae. Deletion of hns resulted in high, nearly constitutive levels of expression of the genes encoding cholera toxin, toxin-coregulated pilus, and the ToxT virulence gene regulatory protein. For the cholera toxin- and ToxT-encoding genes, elevated expression in an …

Bipolar Disorder And Locus Of Control: Implications For Treatment Compliance, Linda J. Ryan-Cox

Theses

Theoretically, a paradigm shift in the 1960s made community-based care and out-patient treatment an acceptable alternative to institutionalization of the chronically mentally ill. Utilizing the Levenson Multidimensional Locus of Control Scale for Psychiatric Patients, the author conducted a causal-comparative study to determine if a link exists between having bipolar disorder, a chronic mental illness, and an external locus of control, a link which might explain the inability of this population to maintain their optimal level of mental health utilizing the out-patient treatment model. Though the study failed to demonstrate any significant differences in external measures of loci of control between …

Using A Multiple Intelligence Checklist In Determining Multiple Intelligence, Rebecca Vee Ralston

Theses

Multiple Intelligence Theory was introduced in 1983 by Howard Gardner in his book Frames of Mind. Since the book was introduced. many educators who were searching for new methods to reach their students have utilized the theory of Multiple Intelligences in their classes. To assist in determining students' areas of strength in Multiple Intelligence. The Multiple Intelligence Checklist (MJC) was used in this study. Students, seven hundred seventy-seven, from a suburban elementary school were asked to complete the MIC. Data was collected from students in grades 2 through 5. A factor analysis was completed to determine if the checklist would …

Net Section Rupture In Tension Members With Connection Eccentricity, Peter Atwood Bartels

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Tension members consisting of single and double angles, single channels and similar sections are frequently used for lateral bracing and as truss elements. Such members will normally have eccentric connections, and it is often permitted, by current design specifications, to neglect this eccentricity in the design of the member. In this study, load tests were performed on three series of short tension member specimens to investigate the influence of varying connection eccentricity and length on the load capacity of the members. Additionally, studies were conducted to investigate the influence of hole fabrication methods. Two methods were used: punched holes and …

Adapting Parent -Child Interaction Therapy To Train Head Start Teachers In Behavior Management, Alisa B. Bahl

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Efforts toward greater inclusion of children with a range of presenting problems have resulted in increasingly more children with difficult behavior in non-specialized classrooms. Unfortunately, teachers report that they have not been trained adequately to work with children who exhibit extreme behaviors. It is important, therefore, that effective methods of training teachers are empirically investigated. In clinical settings, strategies for training parents of young children with disruptive behavior disorders have substantial empirical support. Therefore, using these techniques to train teachers is a logical step. Parent-Child Interaction Therapy is one empirically validated parent training approach that uses coaching as a means …

Structural Determinants Of Murine Leukemia Virus Reverse Transcriptase That Are Important For Template Switching, Fidelity, And Drug Resistance, Evguenia S. Svarovskaia

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Retroviruses exhibit high mutation rates. High mutation and recombination rates increase variation within a viral population and result in production of drug-resistant mutants and/or mutants that can escape a host immune response. Mutations are introduced into the viral genome by error-prone reverse transcriptase (RT), a virally encoded enzyme that converts single-stranded viral RNA into double-stranded DNA. In the current study we are trying to understand what structural determinants of RTs are important for fidelity, frequency of template switching, and drug-resistance. First, we developed an in vivo assay and performed mutational analysis of manne leukemia virus (MLV) RT to identify structural …

Using Web Technology To Assist Auction Companies, Bobbi Richardson

Masters Theses & Doctoral Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Effect Of Disorder On Perpendicular Magnetotransport In Co/Cu Multilayers, Evgeny Y. Tsymbal

Evgeny Tsymbal Publications

We investigate the spin-dependent conductance of the Co/Cu multilayers in the current-perpendicular-tothe- plane (CPP) geometry. Using a realistic tight-binding model for the electronic band structure of the multilayer, and introducing disorder in the on-site atomic energies we calculate the conductance and giant magnetoresistance (GMR) within the quantum-mechanical linear response theory by performing averaging over random disorder configurations. By varying the thickness and the number of individual layers and the degree of disorder in the multilayers, we analyze factors influencing the CPP GMR. In particular, we show the importance of the thickness-dependent interface resistance, which depends on the mean free path …

Limits On Anomalous Ww Γ And Wwz Couplings From Ww/Wz→Eνjj Production, B. Abbott, Gregory Snow, D0 Collaboration

Gregory Snow Publications

Limits on anomalous WW γ and WWZ couplings are presented from a study of WW/WZ→eνjj events produced in pp̅ collisions at √s = 1.8 TeV. Results from the analysis of data collected using the DØ detector during the 1993–1995 Tevatron collider run at Fermilab are combined with those of an earlier study from the 1992–1993 run. A fit to the transverse momentum spectrum of the W boson yields direct limits on anomalous WW γ and WWZ couplings. With the assumption that the WW γ and WWZ couplings are equal, we obtain -0.34 < λ < 0.36 (with Δk=0) and -0.43< Δk<0.59 (with λ =0) at the 95% confidence level for a form-factor scale Λ = 2.0 TeV.

The Emi Benefits Of Ground Plane Stitching In Multi-Layer Power Bus Stacks, Xiaoning Ye, David M. Hockanson, Min Li, Wei Cui, S. Radu, James L. Drewniak, Thomas Van Doren, Todd H. Hubing, Richard E. Dubroff

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The effect on EMI of stitching multiple ground planes together along the periphery of multi-layer PCB stacks is studied. Power bus noise induced EMI and radiation from the board edges is the major concern herein. The EMI at 3 meters for different via stitch spacing and layer thickness is modeled with FDTD modeling. It is shown that the ground plane stitching effectively reduces the radiated EMI that results from fringing fields at the power bus edges. Two families of curves are generated to demonstrate the variation of the radiated EMI as a function of layer thickness and stitch spacing. Further …

The Design, Modeling And Simulation Of Switching Fabrics: For An Atm Network Switch, Dmitriy Molokov

Theses

The requirements of today's telecommunication systems to support high bandwidth and added flexibility brought about the expansion of (Asynchronous Transfer Mode) ATM as a new method of high-speed data transmission. Various analytical and simulation methods may be used to estimate the performance of ATM switches. Analytical methods considerably limit the range of parameters to be evaluated due to extensive formulae used and time consuming iterations. They are not as effective for large networks because of excessive computations that do not scale linearly with network size. One the other hand, simulation-based methods allow determining a bigger range of performance parameters in …

Experimental Study Of Water Droplets Impinging Upon A Hot Surface, Cong Tran

Theses

The objective of the presence investigation is to study the droplet impingement characteristics on heated and unheated surfaces with different surface roughness. The purpose is to show clear photographs of the impinging droplets from beneath the solid surface. Atmospheric pressure (lOlkpa), surface materials (glass and copper), impinging droplet temperature (T, = 24C), original droplet diameter (4.7mm), and testing liquid (H20) were fixed. A MotionScope PCI8000S high-speed camera was placed beneath the heated glass surface. Droplets of water were dropped on the test surface, which is located 25 mm to 50 mm under the tip of a burette. For the unheated …

Experimental And Analytical Modal Analysis Of The Gleason Gp-130 Hob Column Components, Joshua Horvath

Theses

Machine tool vibration has and will be an issue in industry as long as shaping by means of physical material removal continues to be used. Developing a machine that can accommodate this natural vibration that occurs in the cutting process is a goal for every new machine design at the Gleason Works, Rochester. Knowing the vibration signature of a machine is very helpful in determining critical and non-critical cutter excitation frequencies. An analytical frequency analysis of simplified virtual models was completed to aid in the design process of the new Gleason GP130 Hobber. To determine the accuracy of these results, …

Effects Of Plant Flavonoids On The Fate Of Polynuclear Aromatic Hydrocarbons In Rhizosphere Soil, Xiujin Qui

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

High-molecular-weight polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are persistent in the environment although a wide variety of microorganisms can metabolize PAHs. In the past decades, laboratory and filed studies have shown that PAH degradation in soil is often limited by poor bioavailability and oxygen availability. Bound residue formation of PAHs with macromolecules of soil organic matter is an important fate mechanism. More recently, phytoremediation for PAH-contaminated soils is being explored. It is believed that PAH degradation may be enhanced in rhizosphere soil due to the improved aeration condition and the active soil microbial community sustained by root exudates. Whether certain root exudates …

Development And Application Electrochemical And Spectrophotometric Methods Based Upon Ac Potential Modulation For Characterization Of Hybrid Bilayer Membranes And Electroactive Self -Assembled Monolayers Supported On Gold Electrodes, Dmitri A. Brevnov

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Applications of the electrochemical method, AC Voltammetry (ACV), and its modifications based upon monitoring ac current as a function of ac potential modulation are described. The first chapter involves investigating the effect of a short peptide, melittin, on both hybrid bilayer membrane (HBM) dielectric properties and HBM resistance to heterogeneous electron transfer. These effects are discussed in terms of three possible mechanisms by which melittin may affect HBMs. In the second chapter, a modification of ACV, second harmonic ACV, is considered. A data processing method is suggested to analyze data collected at high perturbation frequencies at which the effect of …

Structural Determinants Of Murine Leukemia Virus (Mlv) Reverse Transcriptase (Rt) Important For Fidelity And Drug Resistance In Vivo, Elias Konstantine Halvas

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Error-prone DNA synthesis by retroviral reverse transcriptases (RTs) is a major contributor to variation in retroviral populations generating mutants that exhibit altered host tropisms, resistance to antiviral drugs, and the ability to escape the host's immune system. To identify structural elements of murine leukemia virus (MLV) RT important for fidelity and drug-resistance in vivo, we developed a D17-based encapsidating cell line (ANGIE P) which is designed to express the amphotropic MLV envelope. ANGIE P cell line also contains an MLV-based retroviral vector (GA-1), which encodes a wild-type bacterial beta-galactosidase gene (lacZ) and a neomycin phosphotransferase gene. Transfection of ANGIE P …

Evaluating Diagnostic And Treatment Modalities In The Management Of Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia In The Veterans Administration Population, Ancilla William Fernandes

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), a common prostatic condition among aging males significantly affects quality of life. Though clinical practice guidelines for BPH management have been established, little research has been done to determine adherence to such guidelines. To assess adherence to such guidelines, this study evaluated diagnostic and treatment modalities in BPH management in the VA population (a population with a high percentage of elderly males). A survey, containing simulated BPH patient cases, was mailed to 292 VA urologists, of which 114 (39%) responded. Urologists showed good adherence to the recommended diagnostic tests but preferences varied for the optional tests …

Evaluation Of The Use Of Remotely Sensed Images To Speciate Mixed Appalachian Forests, Doru Ioan Pacurari

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Advancements in technology have led to development of various new sensors and platforms. Among them, the airborne digital camera has potential for use in detailed forest vegetation management, and they offer a number of advantages over conventional aerial photographs. The aim of the study was to determine the ability to speciate mixed Appalachian hardwood forests using the Airborne Data Acquisition and Registration (ADAR) System 1000, and to determine the optimal spatial resolution and the optimal scale of the acquired images. Digital images of a 200-ha area in west central West Virginia were acquired for the study.;The first objective of the …