Digital Commons Network^™

An Empirical Study Of Imputation Techniques For Software Data Sets, Sumanth Yenduri

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Software Project Effort/Cost/Time Estimation has been one of the hot topics of research in the current software engineering industry. Solutions for effort/cost/time estimation are in great demand. Knowledge of accurate effort/cost/time estimates early in the software project life cycle enables project managers manage and exploit resources efficiently. The constraints of cost and time can also be met. To this day, most companies rely on their historical database of past project data sets to predict estimates for future projects. Like other data sets, software project data sets also suffer from numerous problems. The most important problem is they contain missing/incomplete data. …

Comparative Studies Of Sperm Cryopreservation Of Diploid And Tetraploid Pacific Oysters, Qiaoxiang Dong

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation addressed comparative studies of sperm cryopreservation of diploid and tetraploid Pacific oysters, Crassostrea gigas, with an emphasis on the development of standardized and optimized protocols. This includes comparative ultrastructural differences between sperm from diploid and tetraploid oysters, methods for the rapid estimation of sperm concentration, optimization of cryopreservation, and evaluation of the mechanisms for sperm agglutination (formation of clumps or elongated "noodles") in thawed samples. Currently, cryopreserved sperm has not been commercialized in any aquatic species, and standardization and optimization could greatly benefit the potential commercialization of its use. In oysters specifically, cryopreserved sperm from tetraploids would facilitate …

Feminist Hard-Boiled Detective Fiction As Political Protest In The Tradition Of Women Proletarian Writers Of The 1930s, Laura Ellen Ng

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Contemporary feminist hard-boiled detective fiction has been studied as an adaptation of the traditional masculine hard-boiled detective genre. Writers such as Sara Paretsky, Sue Grafton, and Marcia Muller create compelling feminist protagonists to fill the role of detective. The successes and failures of these feminist detectives have then been measured against the standards created in the classic genre by Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett, and James M. Cain. The classic hard-boiled masculine genre came of age in the 1930s and 1940s at the same time as proletarian literature. The two genres share many characteristics including reliance upon first person narrative, the …

Adaptive Remote Visualization System With Optimized Network Performance For Large Scale Scientific Data, Mengxia Zhu

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation discusses algorithmic and implementation aspects of an automatically configurable remote visualization system, which optimally decomposes and adaptively maps the visualization pipeline to a wide-area network. The first node typically serves as a data server that generates or stores raw data sets and a remote client resides on the last node equipped with a display device ranging from a personal desktop to a powerwall. Intermediate nodes can be located anywhere on the network and often include workstations, clusters, or custom rendering engines. We employ a regression model-based network daemon to estimate the effective bandwidth and minimal delay of a …

A Test Of Andragogy In A Post-Secondary Educational Setting, Lynda Swanson Wilson

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This predictive study tested the theory of andragogy in a post-secondary educational setting. It produced a sound psychometric instrument (ALPDEQ). The study was one of the first to successfully isolate adult learners, a major step forward in testing andragogy. Results provided insight of andragogy’s effect on two student outcomes, learning and satisfaction. The findings revealed adult learners enrolled in a MBA degree program provided evidence of learning and were not influenced by andragogy. However, satisfaction with instructor and course was affected by perception of andragogical teaching behaviors exhibited by faculty. The study included many exploratory faculty and student characteristic variables, …

The Music Salon Of Pauline Viardot: Featuring Her Salon Opera Cendrillon, Rachel Miller Harris

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Pauline Viardot (1821- 1910) was a famous mezzo-soprano with a career spanning twenty-four years (1839-1863). Her Music Salon is credited for launching the careers of Camille Saint-Säens, Jules Massenet, Gabriel Fauré, and Charles Gounod. After her retirement she turned her attention towards teaching and composition. She has written over 100 Vocal compositions, 15 Instrumental compositions and 5 Salon Operas. Chapter 1 presents an introduction and biography of the composer, with special emphasis on her family, friends, colleagues, performance career and music salon. Chapter 2 is a closer look at her salon opera Cendrillon including an analysis of the work. This …

The Hobbledehoy's Choice: Anthony Trollope's Awkward Young Men And Their Road To Gentlemanliness, Mark King

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This study reads the rise, reign, and fall of the English gentleman through the lens of the hobbledehoy novels of Anthony Trollope. It explores Trollope’s use of the hobbledehoy (a term, now almost archaic, for an awkward young man) in eight novels appearing between 1857 and 1879: The Three Clerks (1857), The Small House at Allington (1864), The Last Chronicle of Barset (1867), Phineas Finn (1869), Phineas Redux (1874), John Caldigate (1879), The Way We Live Now (1875), and The Prime Minister (1876). Since the hobbledehoy figure serves as a cultural reference point or touchstone, then by examining the permutations …

Molecular Recognition And Its Underlying Mechanisms In Molecularly Imprinted Polymers, Ryan Simon

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Molecular recognition in molecularly imprinting polymers (MIPs) is governed by two mechanisms: pre-organization of functional groups and shape specificity of the binding site. While pre-organization of functional groups has been studied extensively, shape specificity of the binding site has not been rigorously explored. The goal of this research is to determine the influence of shape specificity on molecular recognition in MIPs (Chapter 2). Once shape selectivity was proven to play a vital role in molecular recognition, it was important to determine if pre-organization of functional groups or shape specificity was the dominating factor in determining molecular recognition in the binding …

A Project Improvement System For Effective Management Of Construction Projects, Shahriyar Mojahed

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The concept of construction productivity began in the early 20th century with a series of time and motion studies to improve bricklaying operations. A substantial number of subsequent studies focused on repetitive tasks and automation of the manufacturing operations and subsequently benefited manufacturing more than the construction industry. There has been a lack of studies for productivity improvement in the construction industry. Building upon the available body of knowledge as it related to productivity of manufacturing and construction industries, this study focused on developing a project improvement system for effective management of construction projects. Development of the system included a …

Komatiites Of The Weltevreden Formation, Barberton Greenstone Belt, South Africa: Implications For The Chemistry And Temperature Of The Archean Mantle, Keena Kareem

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The komatiites of the 3.29 Ga Weltevreden Formation, Barberton Greenstone Belt, South Africa represent extremely magnesian lavas derived from the Archean mantle. Three related papers are presented on aspects of the temperature and composition of the Archean mantle, and surface alteration processes. Petrographical and geochemical analyses confirm that olivines from the komatiites retain much of their original igneous character, containing fresh olivines, pyroxenes, and chromites. The olivines from the Weltevreden Formation are extremely magnesian, with Fo contents up to 95.6. Primitive mantle normalized Gd/Yb values near 1, and Al₂O₃/TiO₃ values of 26-33 for these rocks …

Intrinsic Stress And High Temperature Properties Of Metal-Contanining Hydrogenated Amorphous Carbon Coatings, Bo Shi

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

A detailed examination of the intrinsic stress development and mechanical properties of titanium-containing hydrogenated amorphous carbon (Ti-C:H) and W-C:H coatings, deposited in an inductively coupled plasma (ICP) assisted hybrid chemical/physical vapor deposition (CVD/PVD) environment was carried out. Intrinsic stresses within those coatings were found to be compressive and dependent on compositions. The intrinsic compression within Ti-C:H was further shown to be significantly influenced by the energy of ionic species bombarding the substrate during growth. The results suggested that ion bombardment played a significant role in intrinsic stress generation within Ti-C:H, and was likely to influence stress development in other low …

Experimental Quantification And Dem Simulation Of Micro-Macro Behaviors Of Granular Materials Using X-Ray Tomography Imaging, Yanrong Fu

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

A non-invasive experimental method and a clustering DEM model were developed in this study to investigate micro-macro behaviors of real granular materials with irregular particle shape configurations. The investigated behaviors include global deformations, failure strengths and residual strengths, stress and strain distributions, local coordination number, local void ratio, particle kinematics, and fabric orientation distributions. The experimental method includes an approach to automatically identify and recognize multiple particles using x-ray computed tomography imaging (XCT) and an enhanced approach to digitally represent microstructures of granular materials. The digitally represented microstructure can be directly employed for numerical simulation setup. A compression test and …

Learning Discrete Hidden Markov Models From State Distribution Vectors, Luis G. Moscovich

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Hidden Markov Models (HMMs) are probabilistic models that have been widely applied to a number of fields since their inception in the late 1960’s. Computational Biology, Image Processing, and Signal Processing, are but a few of the application areas of HMMs. In this dissertation, we develop several new efficient learning algorithms for learning HMM parameters. First, we propose a new polynomial-time algorithm for supervised learning of the parameters of a first order HMM from a state probability distribution (SD) oracle. The SD oracle provides the learner with the state distribution vector corresponding to a query string. We prove the correctness …

The Operational Aesthetic In The Performance Of Professional Wrestling, William P. Lipscomb Iii

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This study analyzes the relationship between professional wrestling as performance and its fans. For decades, professional wrestling has been characterized as a fraudulent sport of scams and illusion rather than actual and fair competition between athletes. Why then is wrestling so popular? I pursue the question by taking a close look at professional wrestling in four different cultural venues or sites of production: the historical archive, the live wrestling event, the televised event, and the Internet. In each site, I focus on what components define professional wrestling, how they operate, and what appears to be their purpose. Drawing on Neil …

Nitrate Reduction And Methane Formation As Influenced By Iron-Centered Intermediate Redox Processes In Rice Soils, Bin Huang

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Rice fields are a major source of the greenhouse gases methane (CH₄) and nitrous oxide (N₂O) and contribute to nitrate (NO₃^-) pollution in waters. Ferric iron (Fe³⁺) and manganic manganese (Mn⁴⁺) are two intermediate alternative electron acceptors (AEAs) capable of regeneration in freshwater soils. In this investigation, the influences of iron-centered intermediate redox processes on NO₃^- reduction and CH₄ formation in rice soils were studied using soil slurries, soil columns, and potted rice. Reduction of Fe³⁺-centered intermediate AEAs was mainly mediated by obligate anaerobes …

Chorale And Canon In Alfred Schnittke's Fourth String Quartet, Aaminah Durrani

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Alfred Schnittke's String Quartet No. 4 (1989) is a passionate essay, full of fervor and anguish expressed through an eloquent and highly refined style. Essential to this style are the counterpoised textures of chorale and canon. Not only does the coherence of the Quartet's expansive formal design rest largely on the effective deployment of chorale and canon, but these devices are the very engines that drive Schnittke's musical argument. Perhaps the most stunning event of the Fourth Quartet occurs in the finale. In the closing moments of this long work, Schnittke replaces the dissonant and dynamic fury of the fortissimo …

An Investigation Of Selected Academic And Nonacademic Predictor Variables Of Academic Performance Of Student-Athletes At Louisiana State University, Derek Jerone Morgan

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This study investigated the effects of selected predictor variables of academic achievement on the academic performance of student-athletes at Louisiana State University. This study attempted to identify cognitive and noncognitive variables that might explain the variance in the cumulative college grade point average (GPA)among student-athletes at LSU enrolled during the 2003-04 academic year. Cognitive variables included ACT composite score, high school GPA, and cumulative college GPA. Noncognitive variables included positive self-concept, support of academic plans, and community involvement. In addition, data were collected for two sport variables--type of sport participation (revenue and non-revenue generating sports) and time spent on sport …

From The Lucky Land To The Beautiful Country: Illegal Immigration Of Fujianese To The United States, Miao Lin

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

It is puzzling why Fujianese are willing to pay seventy thousand dollars, which could entitle them to a comfortable life in China, to be smuggled to the United States. Despite the voluminous body of research, the life of Fujianese illegal immigrants has not been systematically explored. This study confirmed that people smuggling is a phenomenon that combines cultural, economic, and political factors. Furthermore, Fujianese who came to seek an American dream have lost something much more valuable than what they have gained, such as their youth and family connections.

In addressing the smuggling strategies, causes, and experiences of Fujianese immigrants, …

Assessment And Prediction Of Self-Reported Hiv-Risk Behaviors By Women In Substance Abuse Treatment, Radhika Sehgal

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

This study compared information obtained from self-administered questionnaires (SAQ) and faceto- face interview (FTFI) versions of the HIV Risk-taking Behavior Scale. This study also compared women intravenous drug users (IVDU’s) and non-IVDU’s on rates of HIV risk behaviors and the extent to which unstable housing, unemployment, single parenthood, barriers to accessing health care, and number of years of drug abuse predicted HIV risk. There were no differences in rates of risk behavior reported between SAQ and FTFI formats. IVDU’s had higher sexual risk behaviors than non-IVDU’s. Unstable housing significantly predicted risk behavior. Relative to those with more education, those with …

Saddle Height Positioning For Triathletes Ssing Road Cyclist Methods, Edith Ann Sherman

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Triathlon is the combined sport of swimming, cycling, and running. Cycling is normally the longest portion of the race. Therefore, maintenance of comfort and efficiency while maintaining high power output is essential for success in the cycling portion. Several methods are currently used for determination of height for road cyclists. It has yet to be determined if these methods are applicable to triathletes. Because of the different geometry of a triathlon bicycle, the question remains whether road-saddle fitting techniques can be an applied and work for the triathlon bicycle.

This thesis evaluated the participant’s current saddle height in addition to …

Student Perceptions And Performance In The First Year Of A Mixed Physical Therapy Curriculum, Barbara J. Hoogenboom

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Background: Physical Therapy (PT) is a dynamic health profession. There is a compelling need to educate physical therapists to become self-directed, lifelong learners capable of thinking critically. Mixed-design curricula utilize various teaching methods to instruct students in a variety of knowledge areas, psychomotor skills, and cognitive constructs, such as problem-solving, reflection, and critical thinking (CT).

Purpose: To describe outcomes for PT students enrolled in the first year of the mixed design curriculum at Grand Valley State University (GVSU). Outcomes included the development of self-directed learning (SDL) and CT, as well as student-described satisfaction with and perceptions of the first year …

Assessment Of The Nature And Extent Of Bullying Among Students At An Urban School: Strategies For The Reduction And Prevention Of Bullying, Michele Snow Coyne

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Change And Persistence In An Independent Nonprofit College: A Case Study, John Selmon

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Private independent nonprofit colleges and universities serve millions of students annually, yet very little is written about this group. Most of the literature and research concern large public institutions of higher learning. Davenport College, a private independent nonprofit college system in Michigan and northern Indiana, serving 15,000 students, was the focus of the case study that offers a historical view of how the college evolved and changed over the institution’s 134-year history. The study highlights the influence of the five leaders and significant environmental events that that led to change and persistence in Davenport College from its inception on January …

Measurement Of Lipid Peroxidation In Biology Models Using Gas-Chromatography-Aass Spectrometry, Madhavi Lokireddy

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

C2C12 mouse myoblast cells, grown in glass vials, were connected to a cryofocusing unit to trap volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The VOCs were eluted from the trap by capacitive discharge into a gas chromatograph with time-of-flight mass spectral capabilities (GC-TOFMS) and were found to include the lipid peroxidation product hexanal. The pro-oxidant cumene hydroperoxide elevated the levels of these lipid peroxidation products, whereas the anti-oxidant butylated hydroxy toluene (BHT) impaired their production. Derivatization of the aldehyde products of lipid peroxidation in the same myoblast cells with pentafluorobenzyl hydroxylamine hydrochloride (PFB) provided evidence for formation of non-volatile products of lipid peroxidation …

Investigation Of The Optical, Thermal, And Mechanical Properties Of A Bulk Polymer Using The Surface Thermal Lensing Technique, Bushra Hussain

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

The sensitive and simple photothermal technique of Surface Thermal Lensing (STL) was employed to study the thermo-mechanical response of an amorphous polycarbonate as a bulk. A discussion is given of how previously developed theories did not fit well with the present work. Therefore, only qualitative analysis and discussion of the experimental results is made, emphasizing the influence of various factors on the STL signal. The work here is mainly a study of the dependence of the STL signal on the modulated pump beam frequency. The effect on the STL signal of thermal and mechanical relaxation in the thermally stimulated area …

Characterization Of Black Deposit Associated With Rock Paintings In Little Lost River Cave, Idaho Using Pyrolysis Gc, Sarah Therese Fezzey

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

A black, shiny coating overlies rock paintings in Little Lost River Cave no. 1, located in southeastern Idaho. If this coating is the result of human activity within the cave – a condensate from cooking fires, for example – then a radiocarbon date on the coating would provide a minimum age for the underlying paintings. The work reported here was undertaken to test the assumption that the coating has an anthropomorphic origin. Using pyrolysis-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (py-GC-MS) and thermally-assisted hydrolysis/methylation-GC-MS, we have compared samples of the black coating from Idaho to humic acid, a geologic material; an experimental cooking residue; …

The Effects Of Variable Practice And Subjective Estimation On Error-Detection Capabilities, Colleen E. Donakowski

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Retention and transfer for ballistic open motor skills may best be achieved through specific + variable practice along with error estimation. Inconsistent support for the variability of practice hypothesis warrants a cross-testing of this hypothesis. Estimation had been used and found beneficial on ballistic closed motor skills, but what about ballistic open motor skills?

This study tests ballistic open motor skills on an anticipation timer. Specific and specific + variable practice groups coupled estimation and no-estimation conditions for testing purposes.

The results indicated that although there were no significant differences during acquisition, significant differences did exist for retention and transfer …

The Effect Of Different Imagery Ratios On Learning And Performing A Gymnastic Floor Routine, Adrian Popescu

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to observe the effect of different imagery ratios to physical practice needed to learn and perform a gymnastic floor routine. It was assumed that an increase in imagery ability would reflect positively on the floor routine performance. Twenty-seven school-aged, male and female, skilled gymnasts participated in the study. They were randomly separated into four experimental groups: two groups received three imagery sessions per week and two groups received one imagery session per week. The only delimitation was the use of proficiency levels, the imagery ability levels, and gender to ensure the homogeneity of the …

An Investigation Into The Ring-Enlargement Reactions Of Boron Subphthalocyanine And Boron Subnaphthalocyanine, Andrew Jeremiah Jones

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Ring enlargement syntheses of axially substituted boron subphthalocyanine and boron subnaphthalocyanine were investigated. The trihexylsiloxy derivatives of subphthalocyanine and subnaphthalocyanine were synthesized. These derivatives were then used in the ring-enlargement trials. Symmetrical and asymmetrical ring-enlargement reactions were carried out in a mixture of toluene and dimethylsulfoxide at room temperature. This study represents the first synthesis of boron subphthalocyanine with trihexylsiloxy group in the axial position and the first investigation into the ring enlargement of boron subnaphthalocyanine in which the axial ligand is a trihexylsiloxy group. Precipitates were formed, and it is believed that the precipitates are the metalfree ring-enlarged products. …

The Fear Of Death And The Fear Of Dying: Possible Barriers To Altruistic Behavior, Jennifer Haskin Corwin

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Research in the study of the fear of death and dying and the study of altruism implies that there is a dynamic relationship between the two fields. Rarely, if ever, has a direct connection been made. This study is an effort to further explore the relationship that exists between the fear of death and dying, altruistic behavior, self-esteem, and perceptions of a common humanity. Through the synthesis of these four key social psychological concepts, a theoretical model was developed and tested.

Through the examination and statistical analysis of quantitative data and the systematic evaluation of interview data, several connections between …