Digital Commons Network^™

Today’S Dot And The Quest For More Accountable Organizational Structures, Lenahan O'Connell, Juita-Elena (Wie) Yusuf, Merl Hackbart, Donald L. Hartman, Candice Wallace, Doug Kreis

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

This study investigates the impact of DOT organizational structures on effective transportation planning and performance. A review of the 50 state DOT authorizing statutes and DOT organizational charts found minimal differences in organizational structures among the states. However, 37 states have quasi-independent commissions (sometimes called boards, or councils.) A statistical analysis showed that the commission states have higher Government Performance Project (GPP) scores than the non-commission states. The analysis suggested that effective commissions avoid having members represent geographical regions and political parties and avoid giving the commission the power to select the director of the DOT. In addition the states …

Loss Of Nitrate-Nitrogen By Runoff And Leaching For Agricultural Watersheds, M. A. Elrashidi, M. D. Mays, A. Fares, C. A. Seybold, J. L. Harder, S. D. Peaslee, Pam Vanneste

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

The loss of nutrients in runoff and leaching water from agricultural land is a major cause of poor water quality in the United States. Scientists (NRCS) developed a technique to estimate the impact of agricultural watersheds on natural water resources. The objectives were to apply the technique on Wagon Train (WT) watershed in Nebraska to predict: (i) loss of water by surface runoff and subsurface leaching, (ii) loss of nitrate-N from soils by runoff and leaching, and (iii) nitrate-N loading for WT reservoir. The annual loss of water was estimated at 4.32 million m³ for runoff and 0.98 million …

Comparison Of Glomalin And Humic Acid In Eight Native U.S. Soils, K. A. Nichols, S. F. Wright

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Two important extractable fractions of soil organic matter (SOM) are humic acid (HA) and glomalin-related soil protein (glomalin). Optimizing the purity of each fraction is necessary to correlate fraction quantity and molecular characteristics with soil quality. Manipulation of extraction sequence and controlled precipitation of HA were used to evaluate co-extraction of HA and glomalin. Eight bulk soil samples (0 to 10 cm depth) were collected from four U.S. states (Colorado, Nebraska, Maryland, and Georgia). In Experiment 1, glomalin extraction (50 mM citrate, pH 8.0, at 121 'C) was followed by HA extraction (0.1 N NaOH at room temperature), and Experiment …

Listening To The Divine Lyre: Greek Epigrams And Theories Of Lyric, Allen E. Helmstetter

Theses and Dissertations

I ask whether or not the Lyric can be defined solely in structural terms as a self-referential linguistic artifact, and if so, in what sense we should construe the poem’s relationship to the world and to knowledge. Using close readings of ancient and classical Greek epigrams, I first turn to Michael Riffaterre’s semiotics of poetry, in which it is proposed that the sign/signifier relationships generated in the text of poems can be exhausted in principle in an intertextual system of signs that makes no reference to the world. I then turn to Paul de Man, who suspects that Riffaterre may …

Mercury Oxidation By Chlorine-Containing Species And Scrubbing In A Wet Flue Gas Desulfurization System, Yongxin Zhao

Theses and Dissertations

This research is particularly related to mercury control technologies. The state of the art in mercury emission control is generally classified into two categories: Mercury Transformation and Mercury Capture. In this research, two chapters (3 & 4) are specifically related to mercury transformation and another two (5 & 6) are related to mercury capture.

Chapter 3 investigates the capabilities of HCI and CU on Hg° oxidation. The resulting data indicated that both were effective in the combustor. However, HCI was less effective in a quartz reactor. Subsequently, the inhibitory effects of NO and S02 were identified in the quartz reactor. …

Galactic Cosmic-Ray Modulation Using A Solar Minimum Mhd Heliosphere: A Stochastic Particle Approach, Bryan M. Ball, Ming Zhang, Hamid K. Rassoul, Timur J. Linde

Aerospace, Physics, and Space Science Faculty Publications

An example of Galactic cosmic-ray modulation in a fully three-dimensional heliosphere is presented here. We use a stochastic particle method to solve for modulation without requiring symmetric boundaries or fields. We include all typical modulation terms, including full three-dimensional drift. We have applied this to an MHD heliosphere appropriate for solar minimum conditions. This field includes nonradial solar wind velocity components, as well as a built-in nonspherical termination shock. Parameters that are of interest in modulation can be analyzed in detail, particularly the momentum change of cosmic rays during their transport through the heliosphere. We show radial profiles of modulation …

Montana Kaimin, December 1, 2005, Students Of The University Of Montana, Missoula

Montana Kaimin, 1898-present

Student newspaper of the University of Montana, Missoula.

Faculty Senate Chronicle For December 1, 2005, Rose Marie Konet

The University of Akron Faculty Senate Chronicle

Minutes of the regular meeting of The University of Akron Faculty Senate on December 1, 2005.

The Critical Entrepreneurial Competencies Required By Instructors From Institution-Based Enterprises: A Jamaican Study, Raymond Dixon, Ronald L. Meier, Danny C. Brown, Rodney L. Custer

Journal of STEM Teacher Education

No abstract provided.

Memory And Fragmentation In Dissociative Identity Disorder, Margaret Rose Barlow '96

Doctoral Dissertations

Dissociative identity disorder (DID), formerly called multiple personalities, is a condition in which aspects of experience and memory are separated from each other and from awareness. The current study adds to the literature in this area by utilizing a broad conceptualization of memory functioning in DID, combining ecologically valid memory tests with experimental paradigms, and examining shareability, switching, and integration. Eleven women with DID participated in a two-session experiment that included a variety of memory measures. Participants were given no instructions regarding switching among alters, but were later asked how often they had switched. They reported significantly higher levels of …

Donuts, Rose Calkins

The Prairie Light Review

No abstract provided.

An Analog Vlsi Implementation Of A Multi-Scale Spike Detection Algorithm For Extracellular Neural Recordings, Christy L. Rogers, John G. Harris, Jose C. Principe, Justin C. Sanchez

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

This paper discusses a multi-scale neural spike detection algorithm for a low-power analog circuit implementation. The key idea is to implement wavelet decomposition and improve spike detection by independently controlling thresholds for each scale. Each thresholder scale is then combined to provide a single output indicating a spike occurrence. This spike detection algorithm shows promising results towards a robust, compact, and unsupervised low power analog spike detection circuit. A low power front-end spike detection circuit can be added to a neural amplifier and dramatically reduce the required data bandwidth for BMI applications. © 2005 IEEE.

An Empirical Study Of Fiscal Decentralization Of Local Governments In China, Jianfeng Wang

Dissertations

The world is experiencing dramatic fiscal reconstruction in the socialist and (former) socialist countries and of continuing and fascinating evolution of government structure elsewhere. Being one of the fastest growing economies over the past nearly three decades, China seems deeply embracing this global mantra of power devolution in her effort to energize local economy that was suffocated in the highly constricted state-planning system. The literature of the Chinese central-local studies suggests that fiscal decentralization from the central government to provincial governments is a key institutional factor to explain Chinese economic success. However, the literature misses various lower levels of government …

Destabilized Doctrine At The End Of The Rehnquist Era And The Business Related Cases In Its Final Term, Barbara K. Bucholtz

Tulsa Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Market For Legal Education And Freedom Of Association: Why The "Solomon Amendment" Is Constitutional And Law Schools Are Not Expressive Associations, Andrew P. Morriss

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

This term the Supreme Court will confront the constitutionality of the Solomon Amendment, which mandates equal access for military recruiters at universities that accept federal funding. The Third Circuit previously held the statute unconstitutional. This Article argues that the Court should reverse and uphold the statute because the lower court failed to consider the cartelized nature of legal education and so assumed that law schools are "expressive associations" entitled to assert First Amendment claims; the court also failed to give proper deference to Congress's exercise of its Article I power to raise and support armies and over-valued law faculties' interest …

Turning A Government Search Into A Permanent Power: Thornton V. United States And The "Progressive Distortion" Of Search Incident To Arrest, George M. Dery Iii, Michael J. Hernandez

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

Cleaning Up The Eighth Amendment Mess, Tom Stacy

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

This article criticizes the Court's interpretation of the Eighth Amendment's Cruel and Unusual Punishment Clause and offers its own understanding. The Court's jurisprudence is plagued by deep inconsistencies concerning the Amendment's text, the Court's own role, and a constitutional requirement of proportionate punishment. In search of ways to redress these fundamental shortcomings, the article explores three alternative interpretations of the Clause: (1) a textualist approach; (2) Justice Scalia's understanding that the Clause forbids only punishments unacceptable for all offenses; and (3) a majoritarian approach that would consistently define cruel and unusual punishment in terms of legislative judgments and penal custom. …

"So Long As Our System Shall Exist": Myth, History, And The New Federalism, Paul D. Moreno

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

This article provides the broad historical context necessary to understand contemporary developments in federalism doctrine. It shows that dual federalism has a long and varied history and that federalism is a content-neutral principle to which both sides in major political contests have appealed. It seeks to show that the predominant perspective on federalism today - that it is an inherently conservative principle - is the result of historical misperception. This article reinterprets the history of American federalism in light of recent historical scholarship concerning various periods: principally the country's founding; slavery, the Civil War, and Reconstruction; the late nineteenth-century social …

Up Against The Wall Of Separation: The Question Of American Religious Democracy, Bruce Ledewitz

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

A Convenient Blanket Of Secrecy: The Oft-Cited But Nonexistent Housekeeping Privilege, William Bradley Russell Jr.

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

No abstract provided.

Determination Of Stiffness Matrix Of Tapered Roller Bearings For Vibration Models, Jeeva Kumar

Masters Theses

The stiffness matrix of tapered roller bearings under radial and axial load conditions was evaluated using an analytical model and an experimental approach. An experimental test system was designed and manufactured to determine the radial stiffness of the bearing under combined axial and radial load conditions. A second fixture was designed to measure the stiffness of the bearing under pure axial load conditions. The stiffness coefficients determined have been compared with those obtained from the analytical model, OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) data and ABAQUS model (finite element analysis software).

Cloning, Overexpression, Purification And Characterization On N-Terminal Metal Binding Domains 5 And 6 Of Wilsons Disease Protein, David Achila

Masters Theses

Wilsons disease is an autosomal recessive disorder of copper metabolism which results from mutations in the gene encoding for Wilson disease protein (WDP). The cytosolic N-terminus of WDP comprises six metal binding domains each containing a conserved metal binding motif, GMXCXXC. The contribution of these metal binding domains to copper homeostasis is poorly understood. We have cloned, expressed and purified residues 485 to 633 corresponding to N-terminal metal-binding domains 5 and 6 of WDP (WD5-6). Two of the 3 disease causing mutations in the N-terminal metal binding domains of WDP occur one in each of these domains and the two …

Characterization Of Web Server Workload, Amit Sangle

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Realistic and formal mathematical description of web-server workload forms a fundamental step in the design of synthetic workload generators, capacity planning and accurate predictions of performance measures. In this thesis we perform detailed empirical analysis of the web workload by analyzing access logs of nine web-servers. Unlike most previous work that focused on request-based workload characterization, we analyze both request and session characteristics. We perform rigorous statistical analysis to determine the self-similarity of web traffic and heavy-tailedness of the distribution of different session parameters. Our analysis shows that web traffic is self-similar and the degree of self-similarity is proportional to …

Organic Poultry Production And Forage Digestibility, Nancy P. Buchanan

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The current experiments were conducted to evaluate organic poultry production and the digestibility of organic feeds and pasture forages. A performance study was conducted to determine the effect of exogenous non-starch polysaccharide (NSP) enzyme supplementation on the performance and carcass characteristics of organically-reared broiler chickens. The addition of an exogenous NSP enzyme cocktail improved the performance and carcass characteristics of organically-reared broilers given access to pasture only in spring months. Pasture forages may contribute digestible nutrients to poultry; however, this contribution has not been evaluated in past research. A digestibility study was conducted to determine the nitrogen-corrected apparent metabolizable energy …

Implications For The Small Mammal And Earthworm Communities In A Degraded Ecosystem, Jennifer Aaron Edalgo

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

At Fort Necessity National Battlefield, Pennsylvania, we trapped small mammals in areas dominated by Morrow's honeysuckle, an invasive shrub, and we determined that prebaiting 1 and 2 days before the actual trapping period did not improve trapping success. We do not recommend using the added resources (i.e., time, money, personnel, and equipment) to incorporate prebaiting into trapping regimes because trapping success was not improved. We fluorescent powdertracked mice in old field and forested areas with Morrow's honeysuckle encroachment to determine the microhabitat they selected. Mice selected paths with high shrub and tree cover and low herbaceous cover. They selected native …

Resistance Of Temporally Controlled Behavior To Change, Mirari Elcoro

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

To extend research on the relation between temporal control and resistance to change, the temporal location of response-independent food was examined in a modified peak-interval procedure (PIP) with pigeons. Sequences of the PIP consisted of 2, 3, 4 or 5 FI 30-s trials followed by a 90-s peak trial, each separated by a 90-s blackout. In different conditions, response-independent food was delivered within the first, last, or a randomly selected FI trial of each sequence. Overall, quarter-life values, peak times, and peak rates showed the highest decrease in temporal control relative to baseline when disruption occurred in the last FI …

Nesting Success And Nest Site Characteristics Of Four Thrush Species On A Managed Forest, Rachel Dellinger

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Four thrush species breed sympatrically in the Allegheny Mountain region of West Virginia, U.S.A.: American Robin (Turdus migratorius), Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus), Veery (Catharus fuscescens), and Wood Thrush (Hylocichla mustelina). How nesting habitat is partitioned among the species is unclear, as is the effect of logging activities on the guild. My objectives were to identify nesting habitat characteristics that are partitioned among the species and to determine their effects on nest survival.;I conducted point count surveys and monitored nests of four thrush species on a managed forest. I measured habitat variables at three scales: (1) nest substrate, (2) nest site, …

A Qualitative Analysis Of Sensationalism In Media, William B. Frye

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Sensationalism is a much discussed and examined topic in journalism. This study examines many aspects of sensationalism from its variety of different definitions to its possible effects on the media audience. It briefly touches upon its history and how it has evolved as a concept in the media.;Sensationalism was examined and quantified through a research methodology that inspected three different media markets. This research is an attempt to explore new areas of sensationalism that will need to be studied. The study shows which markets have more sensational content than others; demonstrating the use of sensationalism among different newspapers with varying …

Construction Law, Henry L. Balkcom Iv, Dana R. Grantham, Devin H. Gordon

Mercer Law Review

This Article surveys construction law decisions handed down by Georgia courts and construction-related legislation enacted by the Georgia General Assembly between June 1, 2004 and May 31, 2005. As in prior years, the selected cases primarily fall within five categories: (1) contracts, (2) torts, (3) mechanics' and materialmen's liens, (4) arbitration, and (5) miscellaneous. Recent legislation is highlighted in Section VI.

Evidence, Marc T. Treadwell

Mercer Law Review

During its 2005 session, the Georgia General Assembly passed legislation, commonly known as Senate Bill 3, that will, if upheld by the courts, dramatically impact Georgia's civil justice system. Two provisions of Senate Bill 3 will change Georgia evidence law. The Official Code of Georgia Annotated ("O.C.G.A.") section 24-9-67.1(f), discussed in more detail below, purports to adopt Federal Rule of Evidence 702, the United States Supreme Court's decision in Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, Inc. , and create special rules for expert testimony in medical negligence actions. A new rule for the admission of mistake or error by medical providers …