Digital Commons Network^™

Imaging The Mantle In Southwestern, Utah Using Geochemistry, And Geographic Information Systems, Reina Fern Downing

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Basaltic volcanism is common in the transition zone from the Basin and Range to the Colorado Plateau. This study focuses on an 80 km long transect containing seven separate basalt fields spaced less than 20 km apart. The transect extends from eastern Nevada through northwestern Arizona and into southwestern Utah, across the crustal boundary defined as the transition zone; Geochemistry and geographic information systems (GIS) define the geometry and orientation of a mantle boundary trending approximately E-W, almost perpendicular to the crustal boundary. This study suggests that there is no genetic link between the mantle boundary and crustal boundary between …

Automated Mammographic Mass Shape Classification Using Wavelets And Neural Networks, Nithya Shanmugam

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

The objective of the thesis is to demonstrate the utility of wavelet transforms with artificial neural networks for the classification of mammographic mass shapes. A fully automated mammographic classification system has been developed to distinctly classify mass shapes as either round, which typically indicates the absence of breast cancer, or irregular, which typically indicates the presence of cancer. First, a wavelet transform was applied to the radial distance measure (RDM) of the mass shapes to obtain multiscale decomposition. The discrete wavelet transform and wavelet packet decompositions were investigated. The second step was the computation of scalar-energy features from the wavelet …

An Application Of Optimal Control Theory In Welfare Economics, Steven Ernest Scroggin

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

We consider the maximization of a functional representing social welfare over continuous time. A social welfare functional (SWF) is an integral that models social welfare as a function of individual consumption, individual utility of consumption and the value of utility aggregated across individuals. A SWF may be subject to constraints in the form of differential or integral equations and inequalities, which represent the production possibilities of the economy. We solve the optimization problem by applying the Pontryagin maximum principle. We consider an autarky and a command economy. We explore the interaction of impatience and productivity in autarky and the implications …

Pre-Service Secondary Mathematics Teachers' Attitudes About The History Of Mathematics, Kelly Marie Sullivan

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

This study was conducted to show that using historical material to teach mathematical content to pre-service secondary mathematics teachers could improve their attitudes about incorporating the history of mathematics into the mathematics classroom. A historical module from the Mathematical Association of America was taught to an undergraduate class of pre-service secondary mathematics teachers. Their attitudes regarding the use of the history of mathematics in the mathematics classroom were then compared to the attitudes of students in another undergraduate class, taught by the same researcher, whose instruction did not incorporate history. Results from t-tests indicate that there was a positive change …

Acoustic Characteristics Of Fiberglass-Lined Circular Ducts, Luis A Villegas

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Fiberglass lined circular ducts are circular ducts with an outer spiral metal shell. They are either dual-wall or single-wall. They have been acoustically treated and are intended to be used in heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) duct systems to reduce the amount of sound that is generated by the operation of the components of the system; To quantify the amount of the sound energy that can be attenuated by a given fiberglass lined circular duct, its acoustical performance has to be determined. Acoustical performance of lined ducts can be experimentally determined in an acoustical laboratory under controlled conditions. These …

On Speech Processing, Ying Yang

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Speaking is one of the most important ways of communication between humans. Speech processing refers to the technology of speech signal transformations for more efficient storage and transmission, for enhanced intelligibility and ease of assimilation. According to the different purpose as above, technologies on speech signal processing falls into three main categories. They are speech coding, speech recognition and speech synthesis; This thesis shows the experience of our approaching in this area. It focused on analyzing the different characteristics of speech by using mathematical and statistical methods. A test based on lagl product of signals was taken for separating the …

An Analysis Of Interconnection Network Effects Of Dynamic Element Matching Digital-To-Analog Converters, Hui Fu

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Digital-to-Analog Converters (DACs) convert digital signals into analog signals and thereby provide the link from digital systems to the analog world. Many DAC architectures use matched components to convert signals. However, practical DACs contain mismatched circuit components that cause nonlinear errors in the DAC's analog output signal. Dynamic Element Matching (DEM) is a method that can eliminate or reduce the effects of mismatch errors. In this thesis, DEM algorithms applied to a specific DEM DAC architecture that use several interconnection networks, including the Barrel Shifting network, the Generalized-Cube network, the Omega network and the Indirect Binary n-cube network, are mathematically …

The Gamma Distribution As An Alternative To The Lognormal Distribution In Environmental Applications, Ross Joseph Iaci

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

In environmental applications dealing with data from contaminated sites the positively skewed lognormal distribution has been the most commonly used model. The upper confidence limit (UCL) of the arithmetic mean of a lognormal population is computed by using the H-statistics. Recent concerns have arisen to the effectiveness of the H-Statistic based UCL for the mean of the lognormal distribution in instances of moderately to highly skewed data sets. In this paper the positively skewed Gamma distribution is considered as an alternative to the lognormal distribution and is shown to produce more reasonable UCL's for the mean.

Average Cayley Genus For Cayley Maps With Dihedral Groups, Jamie Keith Langille

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Let Gamma be a finite group and let Delta be a generating set for Gamma. A Cayley map associated with Gamma and Delta is an oriented 2-cell embedding of the Cayley graph GDelta (Gamma) such that the rotation of arcs emanating from each vertex is determined by a unique cyclic permutation of generators and their inverses. A formula for the average Cayley genus is known for the dihedral group with generating set consisting of all the reflections. However, the known formula involves sums of certain coefficients of a generating function and its format does not specifically indicate the Cayley genus …

Basic Skills Teacher Licensure Test Scores As College Of Education Admission Criteria, Audrey Lawrence

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

The objective of this paper is to analyze the criterion-related validity of the Pre-Professional Skills Test (PPST) cut-scores as teacher education program admission criteria. PPST and American College Test (ACT) scores of 372 graduates, and PPST scores and other academic characteristics of 1,062 graduates of a Nevada teacher education program were examined. Findings of this study support that PPST and ACT subtests measure similar constructs, PPST scores do not predict success in student teaching, nor do they predict teacher candidates' college GPAs over and above ACT scores. In addition, over 99 percent of students who received scores of 22 or …

Modelling Land Subsidence Due To Groundwater Pumping/Recharging In The Las Vegas Valley, Mehmet Necmi Okuyan

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

A model for ground settlement and swelling occurring in Las Vegas Spring Preserve due to groundwater level changes has been developed. A FORTRAN code that uses the finite element method has been prepared. The computer code calculates the hydraulic head in the aquifer resulting from pumping and recharging of the Wells The settlement or swelling of the ground level at each node point is calculated based on hydraulic conditions. The computed hydraulic head and settlement resulted between January 1990 and December 1999 have been compared to the observed static heads and the measured settlement; The sensitivity of the settlement to …

Development Of A Gis-Based Framework For Evaluating Space And Parking Utilization, Jyothi S Tallapragada

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Large organizations such as corporations and universities typically occupy many buildings. A typical university space includes classrooms, laboratories, offices, and parKing The cost of adding additional space is significant. Therefore, effective management and utilization of the space is critical, especially to organizations that are growing. Growth may be measured in terms of the number of employees or students. As the number of employees and students increase, the number of trips to the campus also increase. This poses a growing pressure on the parking supply at the campus; The main objective of this thesis is to develop a framework for evaluating …

A Web-Based Finite Element Model For Heat Transfer, Trevor Allen Wilcox

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

A web based Java program has been developed to solve 2-D transient or steady state heat transfer problems. The numerical solver is based on the finite element method. The program is designed to work with both triangle and quadrilateral elements. In this thesis the development of the finite element method, using the Galerkin weighted residuals method, is reviewed and the technique applied to the advection-diffusion equation for the transport of temperature. The Java code and graphical interface used to implement the solver for use on the Internet is discussed.

Super-Resolution Enhancement Of Mpeg Compressed Video, Kyle J. Erickson

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Parents' Perceptions Of Methods Used By Schools To Report Grades, Leslie A. Wiegandt

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Trade Dress, The "Likelihood Of Confusion," And Wittgenstein's Discussion Of "Seeing As": The Tangled Landscape Of Resemblance, Stephen C. Root

Seton Hall Law Review

No abstract provided.

Hierarchical Feature Extraction: A Stepwise Approach To Image Classification, Mark Vincent Mangrich

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

No abstract provided.

Plaintiff's Exhibit 0178b: Cyril Wecht Curriculum Vitae, Cyril Wecht

Sheppard 2000 Trial Plaintiff's Exhibits

No abstract provided.

Bioeconomic Implications Of Modifying The Selectivity Properties Of Fishing Gears, J. J. Agar Donald

Open Access Dissertations

This study investigates the biological and economic consequences of modifying the species selectivity properties of fishing gears in a multispecies context. The objective is to examine whether modifying the species selectivity properties can contribute to rebuild overexploited stocks. To meet this objective, conceptual and empirical bioeconomic models were constructed. The conceptual model was used to investigate the qualitative impacts and the empirical model was used to derive the quantitative impacts of modifying the species selectivity properties of the gear.

In the conceptual part of this study, a stylized model was developed to analyze the long-run equilibrium bioeconomic properties of modifying …

Can The Influence Of Base Rate Information Be Distinguished From The Influence Of Gender Stereotypes In The Psychiatric Diagnostic Decision Making Process?, Maureen Mccormick

Open Access Dissertations

A correct diagnosis may be critical to the implementation of an appropriate treatment plan for a patient. Many factors contribute to the difficulty of assigning a correct psychiatric diagnosis, including misuse, or less than optimal use, of information. Many studies have documented underutilization of base rate data in prediction. Research into the use of stereotypes has demonstrated that too much reliance on an individual's membership in a group may also affect decision making. What is the appropriate use of base rate data and group membership in psychiatric diagnosis? It was hypothesized that participants would underutilize base rates in a low …

To Parcel Or Not To Parcel: The Effects Of Item Parceling In Confirmatory Factor Analysis, Brett A. Plummer

Open Access Dissertations

When testing confirmatory factor analysis (CF A) models, the researcher may either utilize individual items as the manifest variables for the model, or use item parcels or composites, i.e., the sum or average of a set of individual items. Utilizing parcels instead of items may affect the chance of obtaining a proper solution, the fit of the model, and model parameter estimates. Unfortunately there is little previous research to guide the decision to choose between a parcel-level analysis and an item-level analysis. This investigation examined the current status of parceling in the literature and the impacts of parceling through three …

Econlit: Light On The Dismal Science, Jim Millhorn

Faculty Articles, Papers, and Other Scholarship

The article examines the weaknesses and strengths of the economics database, EconLit. Comparison is made with other social science databases with especial emphasis on the alphanumeric classification and indexing system unique to EconLit. The general conclusion is that, despite the high value of its information content, EconLit would benefit by adhering closer to the indexing practices of other mainline social science databases.

Bioanalytical Applications In The Near -Infrared Region Using Fluorescent Covalent And Non-Covalent Probes With Near-Infrared Fluorescence Detection., Clyde Vernon Owens Jr

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

The research presented in this dissertation entails the preparation, characterization, and analytical application of a series of novel tricarbocyanine, phthalocyanine, and napthalocyanine dyes which can be used as fluorescent probes for bioanalytical assays. The first part of this research focuses on the synthesis of a nuclear staining tricarbocyanine dye used for low-level detection of DNA restriction fragments separated via capillary electrophoresis. The second part focuses on the synthetic, purification, and applications of several tricarbocyanine, phthalocyanine, and naphthalocyanine dyes. The tricarbocyanine dyes were synthesized to contain a heavy atom-modification to enhance k isc through spin-orbit coupling and a reactive functional group …

Magnetic Measurements Of Rare Earth Hexaborides., Alem Abraha Teklu

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

The de Haas van Alphen (dHvA) effect is used, using the field modulation method, to study the orientation dependence of the extremal cross-sectional areas of the Fermi surface (FS) and effective masses of CexLa 1--xB6 alloys for x between 0 and 0.05. Previous measurements on these samples, using the pulsed field method, up to x = 1 showed that the FS was spin polarized at very low Ce concentration, at x = 0.05, indicating a spin polarity-dependent scattering mechanism. Moreover, the effective mass was enhanced by the increase of Ce concentration. This was the motivation for the present work which …

The Impact Of Human Resource Expenditures And The Minimum Foundation Program's Level 3 Subsidy On Academic Productivity In Louisiana., John Paul Beaudoin

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

This study investigated the impact of instructional salaries with and without a state-sponsored, supply-side subsidy on the academic productivity of schools in Louisiana. The subsidy under investigation was the Level 3 allocation for instructional salaries outlined in Louisiana's Minimum Foundation Program (MFP) that provides fiscal support for educational costs to local school boards. An educational production function model within the general systems framework outlined by Rossmiller and Geske (1977) was used in this study. All selected variables were aggregated to the school-level, which served as the unit of analysis for the study. The study's final sample (n = 296) approximated …

Essays On The Gain -Loss Pricing Model., Kevin Chun-Hsiung Chiang

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

This dissertation conducts empirical examinations of a new normative (equilibrium) model, the Gain-Loss Pricing Model (GLPM) of Lin (1999a), in which loss aversion is intuitively incorporated into investors' portfolio decisions. In this equilibrium, the risk-return relation is based on the tradeoff between the expected market-related gain of an asset and its expected market-related loss. In addition to its economic intuition, the new model is shown to be more robust than the mean-variance-based Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM). This dissertation consists of two essays. The first essay examines the empirical power of the GLPM using NYSE/AMEX/NASDAQ stocks. This testing framework has …

A Cross-Sectional Study Of Prevalence And Risk Factors For Major Goat Diseases In Eastern And Western Uganda: Results And Exploration Of Biases., Edmond Kato Kabagambe

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

In 1998 a cross-sectional study on goat health and management was conducted in eastern and western Uganda. This study involved 1518 goats which were distributed in 145 herds in 5 districts, namely Kumi, Masaka, Mbarara, Soroti and Ssembabule. Cluster sampling was used to select farms across the two regions. A questionnaire on goat health, management and constraints to production was administered to 145 goat owners. Blood and nasal swabs were collected from a random sample of goats. For each goat a physical examination was performed to detect presence of clinical conditions. Serological assays for contagious caprine pleuropneumonia (CCPP), peste des …

Modeling Escherichia Coli Concentration In Surface Runoff: The Ecoli Model., Teck Yee Ling

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

A biological model, ECOLI, is developed that is capable of continuously simulating E. coli concentration in surface runoff from agricultural land applied with manure. The model was calibrated and validated by using data from field-scale studies at Franklinton, Louisiana. During validation the model was interfaced with GLEAMS-SWT model to obtain the necessary hydrologic and erosion variables as input to the ECOLI model. The ECOLI model was found to perform best when simulating runoff concentration following the first application of waste. For reapplication of waste within 50 days, the trend of decrease over time was well-simulated but simulated E. coli concentrations …

State-Resolved Molecular Photoionization Dynamics Of Polyatomic Systems: Effects Of Non-Linear Changes In Molecular Geometry., James Scott Miller

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

An important topic in the absorption of vacuum ultraviolet photons by molecules is the correlation between electronic and nuclear degrees of freedom during photoionization. However, no previous investigations have probed the correlation between bending excitation and photoejection dynamics over a wide spectral range. We present the first such studies by reporting the influence of bending excitation following CO2 3sigmau --1 and N2O 7sigma--1 photoionization over the photon energy range (15 eV < hvexc < 200 eV). Using dispersed fluorescence spectroscopy in conjunction with synchrotron radiation, we determine the vibrational branching ratio v+ = 0,1,0 0,0,0 for the CO2+ (B 2Sigmau+) and N2O+ (A 2Sigma+) electronic states. The relative rate of production of the upsilon2 = 1 upper vibrational state varies over a broad ionization energy range, and in ways that are largely unanticipated. These branching ratios exhibit a strong thermal dependence, and we are able to separate out effects due to hot-band excitation from those that are due to vibronic coupling. The data indicate that the continuum electron is responsible for the observed energy dependence in CO2 3sigma u--1 photoionization. This is a previously unobserved result. Additional studies examine the influence of simultaneous excitation in the bending and symmetric stretching modes in N2O+ [A 2Sigma+, v + = (1,1,0)] to determine the effect of changing the energy separation of vibronically coupled potential surfaces. Finally, the CF4 + [D 2A1, v+ = (1,0,0,0)/(0,0,0,0)] branching ratio is studied, which provides the first experimental observation of a predicted low-energy shape resonance in this photoionization pathway.

Atomic And Electronic Properties Of Neutral And Cationic Metallic Clusters., Andrew Marc Kolchin

LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses

We find optimal atomic and electronic structures for neutral and singly, positively charged clusters of beryllium and beryllium-lithium (of the form BeLik) using density functional theory in the local spin density approximation. Ions are moved with a steepest descent method, and the electronic wave functions optimized using a fictitious dynamics with simulated annealing, as conceived by Car and Parrinello. Shell-like orbitals, filling angular momentum states in the order: 1s 2p 2s 1d, are obtained for the beryllium clusters. The same ordering is found for the BeLik clusters which indicates a departure from the ordering found in pure alkali clusters by …