Digital Commons Network^™

Written Language Skills Of Middle And High School Students In An Alternative Program, Zuhar Rende

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the written language skills of middle and high school students who were attending alternative programs in Southern California. The participants of this study were 114 students who were identified and served under Delinquency Prevention Program (DPP) and 83 students who were identified and served under Court Ordered Probation (COP). The Test of Written Language -3 (TOWL-3) (Hammill & Larsen, 1996) was administered to the participants in order to obtain written language measures. In addition, this study investigated whether any relationships exists between written language skills, academic measures and selected demographic characteristics of …

Multifunctional Nanocomposite Co-Containing Diamondlike Carbon Thin Films, Fengli Wang

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Metal-containing, hydrogenated carbon films (Me-a-C:H) is a special class of nanocomposite films of particular interest since they can be multifunctional through the synergistic interaction of their individual components. Thus, nanocomposite thin films possess high potential in a wide field of engineering applications, especially in small scale devices. A series of multifunctional nanocomposite Co-a-C:H thin films have been synthesized by a hybrid chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and physical vapor deposition (PVD) process to uncover the relationship between synthesis, microstructure and properties. The effects of deposition parameters on the microstructural evolution and properties have been systematically studied. The results showed that the …

Characteristics Of An Effective Teacher Of Reading In An Elementary School Setting, Jennifer Aby Archer

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Struggling readers have been the central focus of American politics for decades. Teachers of all ages and experiences across America deliver reading instruction in a variety of ways. The purpose of this study is to determine the characteristics of an effective teacher of reading in an elementary classroom setting. The study was conducted in a public and a private sector school in a capital city in the southern United States. Two principals, two second grade teachers, and two fourth grade teachers were participants in this study. A qualitative research focus provided the methodological basis for this study. The research design …

Utility Of The Implementation Of Programmatic Systems To Reduce And Eliminate Restraint Use For The Treatment Of Problem Behaviors With Individuals With Mental Retardation, Yemonja Smalls

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Persons with mental retardation continue to remain one of society’s most vulnerable groups as the number of individuals served increases and non-proportional resources are allotted to take of their needs. With results of national investigations indicating widespread indiscriminate abuse of restraints and overmedication to manage dangerous behaviors, federal mandates have been initiated to ensure ethical, safe and clinically sound use of these techniques. This study addressed the implementation of systemic changes that included a restraint education program and policy changes, careful monitoring and review of restraint and behavioral programming by oversight review bodies, and intense training of preventative and de-escalation …

Interactions Of Insect Herbivory And Multiple Abiotic Stress Agents On Two Wetland Tree Species In Southeast Louisiana Swamps, Rebecca Faye Souther-Effler

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Forested wetlands in Louisiana are hydrologically isolated from the Mississippi River, impounded by manmade structures, impacted by saltwater intrusion, and are sinking, resulting in more frequent flooding for longer periods. Additionally, defoliation of the two dominant trees, baldcypress (Taxodium distichum L. Rich) and water tupelo (Nyssa aquatica L.), occur frequently during spring. In Louisiana, the baldcypress leafroller, BCLR, (Archips goyerana Kruse) and the forest tent caterpillar, FTC, (Malacosoma disstria Hubner) defoliate up to 120,000ha of baldcypress-tupelo swamps. Restoration plans call for reintroducing Mississippi River water (diversions) to increase sediment elevation, promote natural regeneration, and enhance primary and secondary productivity. In …

The Road To Redevelopment: New Urbanism, Nostalgia, And The Process Of Downtown Revitalization In Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Jennifer Speights-Binet

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This qualitative study focuses on a planning process in Baton Rouge, Louisiana called Plan Baton Rouge, which began in the summer of 1998 and continues through the present. The overriding goal of the Plan Baton Rouge process is to revitalize downtown Baton Rouge and promote economic and cultural vitality while implementing the design practices of New Urbanism. New Urbanism is a design methodology that condemns suburban sprawl while promoting denser, early-twentieth-century-style townscapes and urban centers, focusing on mixed land use, pedestrianism, and aesthetic and architectural continuity. Through participant observation, this ethnographic account of New Urbanism in practice provides an in-depth …

Numerical Simulation And Field Verification Of Inclined Piezocone Penetration Test In Cohesive Soils, Lei Wei

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

A large strain finite element analysis is performed to analyze the effect of soil anisotropy on the inclined piezocone penetration test in normally consolidated cohesive soils. The piezocone penetration is numerically simulated using the commercial finite element code ABAQUS. The saturated clay is modeled as a two-phase material and the effective stress principle is used to describe its behavior. A frictional contact interface utilizing Mohr-Coulomb's theory was chosen to represent interactions between the surface of the cone and the soil. The Anisotropic Modified Cam Clay Model (AMCCM) by Dafalias (1987) was chosen and implemented into ABAQUS through user subroutine UMAT. …

The Relationship Between Social Behavior And Mealtime Behavior Problems In Individuals With Severe And Profound Mental Retardation, David E. Kuhn

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

One of the defining features of mental retardation is a problem in adaptive functioning. An area of adaptive skills commonly deficient in this population is social functioning, often characterized as behaviors that provide individuals with the means to interact effectively and appropriately with others. Researchers in this area have generally focused on improving appropriate social behavior and/or decreasing behavioral excesses that interfere with social interactions. Few studies have examined the effects of improving social behavior on collateral behaviors. The current study examined the relationship between social behavior and feeding and mealtime problem behavior in individuals with mental retardation. Individuals across …

Soils Of Regeneration: Exploring Conceptualizations Of The Natural World As A Context For An Ecologically-Sensitive Curriculum, Emily A. Demoor

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

David Orr (1994) asserts that the ecological crisis is a crisis of education. This study explores the relationship between the ecological crisis and education by examining the role that language plays in shaping perceptions of the natural world. Toward this end it analyzes narratives of science, literature and other disciplines that conceptualize the natural world as object and as subject. It evaluates how particular metaphors used in reference to the natural world enhance or impede ecological understanding and the cultivation of responsibility and stewardship and considers ways in which these conceptualizations might be used as a basis for new curriculum …

American Verismo?: Insights Into The Padrone, And Opera By George Whitefield Chadwick (13 November 1854 - 4 April 1931), Jon Steffen Truitt

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The contribution of George Whitefield Chadwick (13 November 1854 – 4 April 1931) to American music comes in many forms: composer, teacher, conductor, pianist and organist. A leading figure of the Second School of New England composers, Chadwick was also largely responsible for the effective reorganization of the New England Conservatory. He was arguably one of the most influential teachers in American music in the latter half of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth century. This study deals with Chadwick’s last opera intended for professional production, The Padrone. The opera, an American example of Italian verismo, is …

A Basic Interpretative Analysis Of Instrumental Music Education Majors' Approaches To Score Study In Varying Musical Contexts, Jeremy S. Lane

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purposes of this qualitative study were to 1) provide a holistic description of procedures used by undergraduate instrumental music education majors (N = 21) in music score study tasks; 2) examine relationships among these procedures and their use in varying musical contexts; 3) examine relationships among score study tendencies, education level, and overall musical ability; and 4) provide general comparisons of undergraduate music education majors’ score study procedures and those implied by expert conductors’ major disciplinary ways of thinking. Each subject participated in two one-on-one interview sessions with the investigator. During each session, subjects “thought out loud” as they …

Synthesis And Antibacterial Assessment Of Water-Soluble Hydrophobic Chitosan Derivatives Bearing Quaternary Ammonium Functionality, Mrunal R. Thatte

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Chitosan is a naturally occurring, bio-degradable, non-toxic, non-allergenic bio-polysaccharide derived from chitin, found in abundance in nature. Studies aimed at deriving newer applications of chitosan are hence of interest. Among these, one of the focuses of investigations is aimed at excellent antimicrobial activity demonstrated by chitosan. In this context, certain quaternary ammonium derivatives of chitosan have been shown in the past to be highly effective antibacterial materials. In the present study, substituted chitosan derivatives were synthesized and further quaternized using Quat-188 to produce water soluble derivatives at neutral pH. The antibacterial assessments of the quaternized derivatives of substituted chitosan were …

New Insights Into The Binding Site Formation And The Performance Of Molecularly Imprinted Polymers, Hyunjung Kim

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) are finding important applications in the field of separation science, catalysis, sensor, and immunoassays. To optimize the performance of the MIPs, it is essential to understand the underlying mechanism of the process. This research focuses on understanding binding site formation and performance, and improvement of the MIPs. Chapter 1 introduces the concept of the MIPs, and binding isotherm and affinity distribution of heterogeneous binding sites in the MIPs. Chapter 2 describes fundamental studies conducted to understand the binding site formation of the MIPs. The number of binding sites (N) and the number average association constant (Kn) …

Assessment Of Instructional Methodologies And Student Information Processing Styles In A Terrorism Preparedness Course, William James Mccarthy

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The focus of the research was the evaluation of two instructional methodologies for teaching terrorism preparedness at several universities in Louisiana. Participants were taught a curriculum for an audience who may work at a potential terrorist target. The purpose of the research was to determine if processing styles based instruction improved learning. The objectives of the study were to: 1) Describe participant demographics: a) age, b) gender, c) credit hours, d) field of study; and e) preferred Strategic Information Processing Style (SIPS); 2) Determine if changes occur in knowledge of terrorism preparedness as measured by the Terrorism Awareness test; 3) …

An Analysis Of György Ligeti's Nonsense Madrigals, Dennis Malfatti

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

While other contemporary composers have written works called madrigals, Ligeti's Nonsense Madrigals are truly unique as exemplified by the myriad of influences that went into their creation, the technical challenges of their performance, and in the aesthetic result, one which is incomparable to most musical compositions past or present including works by Ligeti himself. Ligeti’s compositional style in these works include the parodying of compositional techniques from the 14th century as well as the rhythmic provocativeness of jazz. The use of parody in these works is compatible with Ligeti’s choice of texts which includes literary parodies by Lewis Carroll. In …

Developing Embryo Technologies For The Eland Antelope (Taurotragus Oryx), Gemechu G. Wirtu

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Assisted reproductive technologies developed in domestic cattle serve as a starting point in similar studies on nondomestic bovids. The common eland is a useful model species for studies on rare tragelaphine antelopes. In Chapter 3 of the present study, effects of components/attributes of protein-free embryo culture media on the in vitro development of in vitro-derived bovine embryos were evaluated. A 2 x 2 factorial study comparing effects of groups of amino acids (20aa or 11aa) in two base media (modified KSOM or BM-3) demonstrated that amino acids and base medium affected embryonic development. A subsequent 7 x 2 factorial experiment …

Modeling Longleaf Pine (Pinus Palustris Mill) Wood Properties Using Near Infrared Spectroscopy, Brian Kipling Via

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This research demonstrated model development for important wood properties using near infrared spectroscopy (NIR); it considered the effect of outside sources of error, and the ability of NIR to measure fiber morphology. Strength, stiffness, and density were successfully modeled from wood samples taken throughout 10 longleaf (Pinus palustris Mill) trees. Principal components and multiple linear regression were compared for performance in prediction of density, strength, and stiffness. I found both modeling techniques to yield similar prediction accuracies. However, I found that density could be estimated through Beer-Lambert’s law since the absorbance at all wavelengths increased with density. Also, 5 of …

Xafs Debye-Waller Factors For Zn Metalloproteins, Nicholas Dimakis, Grant Bunker

Physics & Astronomy Faculty Publications

An accurate and practical method for the calculation and use of thermal x-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) Debye-Waller factors (DWFs) in active sites of metalloproteins is presented. These factors are calculated on model clusters within the local density functional approximation with nonlocal corrections. The DWFs are mapped out and parametrized as a function of the first shell distance and an angle (where applicable), for all significant single and multiple scattering paths, as well as the sample temperature. This approach is applied to the biologically essential but spectroscopically silent Zn+2 active sites composed of histidines, cysteines, and carboxylate ligands in homogeneous …

Nuclear Surveillance And Degradation Of Hypomodified Initiator TrnaMet In S. Cerevisiae, Sujatha Kadaba, Anna Krueger, Tamyra Trice, Annette M. Krecic, Alan G. Hinnebusch, James T. Anderson

Biological Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

The tRNA m¹A58 methyltransferase is composed of two subunits encoded by the essential genes TRM6 and TRM61 (formerly GCD10 and GCD14). The trm6-504 mutation results in a defective m¹A methyltransferase (Mtase) and a temperature-sensitive growth phenotype that is attributable to the absence of m¹A58 and consequential tRNA_i^Met instability. We used a genetic approach to identify the genes responsible for tRNA_i^Met degradation in trm6 cells. Three recessive extragenic mutations that suppress trm6-504 mutant phenotypes and restore hypomodified tRNA_i^Met to near normal levels were identified. The wild-type allele of …

Establishment Limitation Reduces Species Recruitment And Species Richness As Soil Resources Rise, M. Henry, H. Stevens, Stefan A. Schnitzer, Walter P. Carson

Biological Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

1. At local spatial scales, species richness tends to fall as productivity rises. Most explanations have focused on increased extinction, but, instead, we test experimentally whether increased soil fertility reduces recruitment. Specifically, we test whether variation in recruitment is due to source limitation, germination limitation or establishment limitation, and how litter accumulation and seed predation contribute to these processes.
2. We established four crossed experimental treatments in a perennial‐dominated early successional plant community over 3 years. We added seed of 30 species, manipulated access by selected seed predators, removed litter and added slow release fertilizer at four levels (0, 8, 16 and …

Mapping Of Thermo-Fluids Laboratory Experiments Into Web-Based Experiments, Sushil Chaturvedi, Rick Mckenzie, O. A. Akan, A. Priyadershini

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

A methodology is being developed for transforming physical experiments from the undergraduate thermo-fluids laboratory into a web-based virtual experiments. Important characteristics of physical experiments are identified in order to preserve them in physical to virtual domain mapping. Several commercially available software are employed to incorporate in the web-based experiments characteristics such as recreation of physical phenomenon in the virtual domain, measurement of physical quantities on a computer screen, assembly of virtual probes and coupling of the virtual experiment with a data acquisition software. A virtual reality software has been incorporated to enable web-based students to navigate through the virtual laboratory, …

Organizing In The Garment Industry In Mexico: Implications For New Social Movement Theory, Victoria Carty

Sociology Faculty Articles and Research

This paper examines attempts to improve workers' rights in the Maquila Industry in Mexico by using two case studies. It analyzes the struggles that recently occurred at the Kukdong and Duro plants. The underlying question of the research is how to balance the co-existence of market economies with effective means to ensure adequate conditions for workers, and most importantly, ensuring their right to freedom of association. Under recent forms of global economic restructuring, the state is often unwilling or unable to uphold workers' rights. To combat the present form of corporate-driven global capitalism, workers in the South, in solidarity with …

Effect Of Plasma Flux Composition On The Nitriding Rate Of Stainless Steel, Christopher Muratore, Scott G. Walton, D. Leonhardt, Richard F. Fernsler, David D. Blackwell, R. A. Meger

Chemical and Materials Engineering Faculty Publications

The total ion flux and nitriding rate for stainless steel specimens exposed to a modulated electron beam generated argon-nitrogen plasma were measured as a function of distance from the electron beam axis. The total ion flux decreased linearly with distance, but the nitriding rate increased under certain conditions, contrary to other ion flux/nitriding rate comparisons published in the literature. Variation in ion flux composition with distance was explored with a mass spectrometer and energy analyzer as a possible explanation for the anomalous nitriding rate response to ion flux magnitude. A transition in ion flux composition from mostly N2 1 to …

"You Are Entering A Gay And Lesbian Free Zone": On The Radical Dissents Of Justice Scalia And Other (Post-) Queers – [Raising Questions About Lawrence, Sex Wars, And The Criminal Law], Bernard Harcourt

Faculty Scholarship

The most renowned substantive criminal law decision of the October 2002 Term, Lawrence v. Texas, will go down in history as a critical turning point in criminal law debates over the proper scope of the penal sanction. For the first time in the history of American criminal law, the United States Supreme Court has declared that a supermajoritarian moral belief does not necessarily provide a rational basis for criminalizing conventionally deviant conduct. The Court's ruling is the coup de grâce to legal moralism administered after a prolonged, brutish, tedious, and debilitating struggle against liberal legalism in its various criminal …

Writing As A Reader: The Deserted Village Of Jay Parini, Fred L. Gardaphé

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

Ordeal On The Ice, Geoffrey D. Reynolds

Faculty Publications

Ordeal on the Ice is an article concerning the February 8, 1936 rescue of Clayton Brown by United States Coastguardsman Boatswain's Mate Earl Cunningham (1895-1936) that resulted in his own death and that of Claude Beardsley and the awarding of the Gold Lifesaving Medal to Cunningham posthumously.

Fraud Detection In A Gaas Audit;Fraud Detection In A Gaas Audit: Sas No. 99 Implementation Guide;, Michael J. Ramos, Lori West

Guides, Handbooks and Manuals

No abstract provided.

Cpa's Guide To Medical, Dental And Other Healthcare Practices;, Lucy R. Carter, Sara S. Lankford

Guides, Handbooks and Manuals

CD-ROM files converted to PDF and included after main text

Aicpa's Top Technologies 2004, Scott H. Cytron, Anne A. Stanton, American Institute Of Certified Public Accountants. Information Technology Section

Guides, Handbooks and Manuals

No abstract provided.

The Domesticated Liberty Of Lawrence V. Texas, Katherine M. Franke

Faculty Scholarship

In this Commentary, Professor Franke offers an account of the Supreme Court's decision in Lawrence v. Texas. She concludes that in overruling the earlier Bowers v. Hardwick decision, Justice Kennedy does not rely upon a robust form of freedom made available by the Court's earlier reproductive rights cases, but instead announces a kind of privatized liberty right that affords gay and lesbian couples the right to intimacy in the bedroom. In this sense, the rights-holders in Lawrence are people in relationships and the liberty right those couples enjoy does not extend beyond the domain of the private. Franke expresses …