Digital Commons Network^™

Dredging And Dredge Disposal And Reuse In Ireland, Séamus Sutton

Theses

Dredging involves raising material from a river or estuary bed to the surface and transporting it some distance for disposal or reuse. It may be required to improve navigational access, to allow for port development or for mining aggregates.

This thesis includes a literature review and a detailed study of the dredging industry in Ireland. This study is partly based on a nationwide survey undertaken on dredging and dredge disposal and reuse, the results of which are included in a dredging database created for this project. All the main stakeholders in the industry were invited to complete questionnaire forms for …

Multispectral Camera Control And High Speed Image Transfer Using Lossless Hardware Compression, Padraig Ryan

Theses

This work provides extensions of a standard D-Cam/Firewire digital camera platform for use within a multispectral imaging setting and includes real-time lossless image compression targeted at the re-configurable environment of an FPGA. The control and image acquisition structures specific to multispectral systems are detailed with respect to an embedded firmware solution, complementary host PC software driver routines, and camera hardware control infrastructures. The augmentation of the standards based implementation is discussed without compromising compliance with underlying specifications. The mandate for image data acquisition includes glue logic to efficiently transmit data via a high-speed communications pipe, IEEE - 1394 in this …

Getting Real About Ebusiness In Ireland : A Marketing Perspective, Daniel Finbarr Sheehan

Theses

Electronic business has been promoted as marking a sea change in the way companies can develop and deliver products and services. Global markets are increasingly accessible in the new digital economy. Ireland, situated on the periphery of continental Europe, appears to be a perfect example of an economy that can benefit from this new medium. This thesis seeks to go beyond the hype in order to examine eBusiness as a marketing channel.

Given the new opportunities made possible by information and communication technology (ICT), it is instructive to investigate the attitudes of marketers to electronic business. An online survey was …

Family Friendly / Work Life Balance Policies: Perspectives Of Irish Employers And Employees, Caroline Williams

Theses

This study assesses the emergence of family friendly / work life balance arrangements within Irish organisations in view of changing conditions on the labour market, particularly with the increased participation of women. It incorporates the experiences, opinions and commentaries of both Human Resource representatives responsible for the implementation of such practices, and employees availing of them in a broad spectrum of public and private sector organisations.

This research addresses the perceived explicit and implicit barriers, such as organisational size, location and culture which challenge employers and employees in terms of alternative working arrangements. It illustrates the significance of introducing and …

A Troubling Equation In Contracts For Government Funded Scientific Research: "Sensitive But Unclassified" = Secret But Unconstitutional, Leslie Gielow Jacobs

McGeorge School of Law Scholarly Articles

No abstract provided.

Ab Initio : A New Concept In Engineering Education, A History Of The Design, Creation And Implementation Of A New School Of Engineering In Richmond, Virginia (1990-2000), Henry A. Mcgee Jr.

VCU University History Books

Dr. Henry A. McGee, Jr., Founding Dean Emeritus of the School of Engineering at Virginia Commonwealth University, chronicles the history of the School of Engineering through his term as Founding Dean, 1994–1999. McGee details the process of creating a program aimed to balance innovation and entrepreneurship.

Codes Of Interaction, Timothy Michael Martin

Theses and Dissertations

The ideas within this thesis are meant to clarify my explorations, research and painting practice during my studies at Virginia Commonwealth University. I expand on my general statements about being fascinated by advancing technologies and concerned about the after effects of these advancements. The writing explores my curiosity about the internal, skeletal structure of things and how they operate. I explain how the paintings are idiosyncratic hybrids that evoke animation, imaginary scientific propositions, blueprints, maps, and advancing technologies. The work combines these interests with my observations of day-to-day experiences. Isolated events provide found compositions which I then manipulate: a seemingly …

The Experience Of Decision Making In Adolescent Females And Young Women With Mobility Limiting Disorders, Bernice Balzer Allen

Theses and Dissertations

Young women with mobility limiting disorders face many challenges as they move through adolescence into young adulthood. In addition to the challenges of this developmental period, they must consider their disability as they manage their lives. Competent decision making is a foundational skill for self-management and for transition in adulthood. It is also a protective factor for resilience.There is little research on decision making in adolescents with disabilities. Therefore, the purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the decision making experiences of female adolescents and young women with mobility limiting disorders. Theoretical underpinnings for the study included Resilience Theory …

Joint Center Movement Analysis And 3d Motion Modeling Of Upper Arm - Comparison Of Several Algorithms With The Visual 3-D Program, Leena Joseph

Theses and Dissertations

600 out of every 100,000 people in the United States today suffer from some form of cerebellar disease that causes major abnormalities in the equilibrium and aligned, coordinated movement of the body. Hence it becomes essential to diagnose the extent of the movement and gait disorder and provide required therapy to the patients. Various developments have been made in the designing and application of interactive software system for body positioning. Object oriented design techniques are used in the field of software engineering for interactive geometric representation of system behavior. Motion analysis of the upper and lower extremities of the body …

Advanced Placement Art History: Effective Teaching Strategies In The Art Beyond The European Content Area, Donna J. Head

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis presents a study of current research on effective teaching strategies in art beyond the European tradition content area of the Advanced Placement Art History (APAH) examination administered by the College Board. Three Advanced Placement Art History teachers participated in this study. Each teacher demonstrated successful and effective strategies in her APAH program. The criteria for selection required that each participant taught the class for three years (2001-4) and their students scored higher than the national average as published by the College Board. Each teacher discussed with the author how they teach the art beyond the European tradition content …

From Typologies To Portraits: Catherine Opie's Photographic Manipulations Of Physiognomic Imagery, Jennifer T. Bridges

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis proposes that California contemporary photographer Catherine Opie's Being and Having series (1991) and her Portrait series (1993-1996) parody the constraining binary gender discourse and stereotypes that emanate from it. In her art Opie uses familiar codes and identity discourses associated with traditional portrait photography and typological photographs to promote a postmodern and fluid model of gender identity. Her manipulation of photographic technique and subject matter validates cultural stereotypes of gender at the same time that it destabilizes them. Opie also simultaneously highlights fallacies such as the presumed objectivity and evidential force that is associated with the discourse of …

Kennewick Man, Kinship, And The "Dying Race": The Ninth Circuit's Assimilationist Assault On The Native American Graves Protection And Repatriation Act, Allison M. Dussias

Nebraska Law Review

This article examines the Bonnichsen case and the Ninth Circuit's controversial and fundamentally flawed rewriting of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), in light of the history of Native Americans' encounters with anthropologists and of the goals that NAGPRA was intended to achieve. Part II discusses the history of anthropologists' activities involving Native Americans and the remains of their deceased kin, revealing the longstanding practices that NAGPRA was enacted to redress. This historical background provides the context in which NAGPRA must be understood and interpreted, and in light of which decisions under the statute should be made. …

Performance Evaluation Of Frp Bridge Deck Under Shear Loads, Woraphot Prachasaree

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Shear behavior of glass fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) composite coupons, components, and systems is studied under torsional shear, in-plane shear, racking shear, out-of-plane shear, punching shear, and shear of web-flange junction. In addition, local deflection including web buckling of different FRP deck types has been evaluated and reported. FRP composites have been tested under a wide range of shear load conditions and their data has been compared with theoretical evaluations. Experimental data revealed that the shear modulus of FRP bridge decks ranged from 0.25 to 0.5 msi, shear stress ranged from 3 to 12 ksi, while the shear strain to …

Evaluation Of Quality Control Parameters For Superpave Hot Mix Asphalt, Thomas W. Adams

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Quality control of Superpave hot mix asphalt has profound consequences for both the West Virginia Department of Highways (WVDOH) and the constructor who has placed the asphalt. The quality control procedure includes taking samples from the job site, and performing various tests so that certain volumetric parameters can be evaluated against a standard set of tolerances. WVDOH currently uses a statistically based quality control - quality assurance method, QC/QA.;The current QC/QA requirements used by the WVDOH for Superpave projects have not been statistically evaluated to establish the risk to the agency and constructor for either accepting an unsatisfactory material or …

An Analysis Of Fragmented Land-Use *Policy And Land-Use Change: The Case Study Of Metropolitan Pittsburgh, Richard J. Hoch

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This research examines the relationship between remotely sensed land-use changes and particular land-use policies within metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania from 1992 to 2002. During the 1990's the Pittsburgh region experienced a tremendous expansion of residential and urban land-use change while simultaneously experiencing a population decline. Within the metropolitan Pittsburgh area there are 525 local and independent municipal governments with the legislative right to enact or not to enact land-use planning policies enabled by the Pennsylvania Municipal Planning Code. This fragmentation creates uneven intra-urban development patterns at the urban scale. This research demonstrates that certain land-use changes that occurred during the study …

Analysis Of Aging Effects And Effectiveness Of Dewatering Treatment Methods On Acid Mine Drainage Sludge, Phanindra Kumar V. Kunderu

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) is produced when sulfide minerals in overburden are subjected to oxygen and water, and generally contains low pH, high acidity and high dissolved metal concentrations. Typically, active treatment of AMD involves the addition of a neutralizing reagent to raise the pH and precipitate the metals as their respective insoluble metal hydroxides. As a by-product of the active treatment of AMD, a large amount of sludge is generated. A site, established in Monongalia County, WV for the active treatment of AMD using ammonia and hydrogen peroxide, generated sludge consisting mainly of water with a total solids concentration …

Amending Subsoil With Composted Poultry Litter: Effects On Soil Physical And Chemical Properties, Turfgrass Establishment And Weed Pressure, Mili Mandal

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Experiments were established in fall 2003 at West Virginia University to evaluate the effects of incorporation of composted poultry litter (CPL) on subsoil physical and chemical properties, Kentucky bluegrass ( Poa Pratensis L.) establishment, root depth, and weed pressure. Twenty cm of topsoil was removed and CPL was incorporated to a depth of 12.7 cm at 10%, 20%, and 40% v/v prior to seeding or sodding. Composted plots were compared to N-fertilized (454 Kg ha-1) and control plots. Positive linear increases in total water content (thetaT), organic matter, pH, and CEC were observed following compost incorporation with a decrease in …

Objectivity And The Embedded Reporter: An Examination Of A Reporter's Ability To Remain Objective While Embedded With Military Troops, Tamara Zaleski Turse

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

This thesis examines the program of embedding journalists into military units during the Second Gulf War to determine if journalists can provide an objective view of the war to the public back home. To fully understand the scope of embedding, this work first reviews the relationship between the media and the military by tracing the evolution of the American war correspondent starting with the U.S. Civil War through to the Second Gulf War. As public opinion is often formed, at least in part, by news reports, whether print or broadcast, this thesis surveyed the public to see if they felt …

Fighting For Freedom: The 1649 War Between The Cossacks And The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Adrian Mandzy

Faculty Research at Morehead State University

To most westerners, the Cossacks remain a mysterious and romanticized people. Nineteenth century writers and artists depict the Cossacks as extraordinary horsemen. This image is often reinforced by descriptions of Cossacks immune to the vigour of the Russian winter as they continued to nip at the heels of Napoleon’s Grand Army in 1812. Novels, like Gogol’ s Taras Bulba, and the opera Mazepa, suggests the Cossacks were both cruel and crafty, while others highlight their barbarity and backwardness.

Annual Review Of The World Pheasant Association 2004/2005, World Pheasant Association

Galliformes Specialist Group and Affiliated Societies: Reports and Other Materials

Chairman of Trustees' report, Dick Potts

Treasurer's report and accounts, Ian Hoggarth

Conservation activities in 2004/2005, Philip J. K. McGowan

WPA around the world: Highlights from the chapters

Grouse Specialist Group report, Ilse Storch

Megapode Specialist Group report, Rene Dekker Darryl N. Jones, and Gillian C. Baker

Partridge, Quail and Francolin Specialist Group report, John P. Carroll

Pheasant Specialist Group report, Peter J. Garson

Species Survey 2004, Philip J. K. McGowan

Re-introduction of Green Peafowl into Peninsular Malaysia, Gary Robbins and John Corder

Ten years of WPA:s South Asian Field Office, Rahul Kaul

Range expansion of grey francolin in the …

An Evaluation Of Desktop Video Conferencing For One-To-One Tutorial Support In Mathematics, Brian Joseph Walker

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

The growth in Flexible and Distributed Learning will, it is believed, lead to a need for a more innovative and flexible approach to the way support is offered to students. This study which was conducted with students at a Further Education College looks at the effectiveness of using Desktop Video Conferencing (DVC) to provide support to students studying mathematics at a number of different levels. The research design adopted the concept of triangulation with three different approaches being used. The first strand of the methodology was the collection of statistical data for all students re-sitting GCSE mathematics to develop a …

Artificial Intelligence-Based Approach To Modelling Of Pipe Organs, Brahim Hamadicharef

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

The aim of the project was to develop a new Artificial Intelligence-based method to aid modeling of musical instruments and sound design. Despite significant advances in music technology, sound design and synthesis of complex musical instruments is still time consuming, error prone and requires expert understanding of the instrument attributes and significant expertise to produce high quality synthesised sounds to meet the needs of musicians and musical instrument builders. Artificial Intelligence (Al) offers an effective means of capturing this expertise and for handling the imprecision and uncertainty inherent in audio knowledge and data. This thesis presents new techniques to capture …

Fact Sheet, Yale University Office Of Institutional Research

Fact Sheets

No abstract provided.

Front Matter: The State Of The Region: Hampton Roads 2005, Regional Studies Institute, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

Cover, front matter, table of contents, and other materials for the 2005 The State of the Region report authored by the Regional Studies Institute at Old Dominion University

Part 2: Is There A Housing Price Bubble In Hampton Roads?, Regional Studies Institute, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

While housing prices increased 40 percent in Hampton Roads (after inflation) during the past decade, most of this increase can be attributed to improved eco-nomic fundamentals such as lower interest rates, increased incomes, Department of Defense housing incentives and more cautious building policies by area developers. Hence, we do not have the kind of housing price bubble that currently exists in cities such as San Diego, San Francisco and Boston, and the state of Florida. We may face some future price adjustments, but they are not likely to be wrenching.

Part 3: Richard Florida And The Creative Classes Of Hampton Roads, Regional Studies Institute, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

Professor Florida argues that highly mobile, creative individuals are the kingpins of modern economic growth. They are especially attracted to regions that offer diverse demographics, cultural opportunities, living styles and residential areas, as well as a tolerance of the uncommon. Hampton Roads does not fare well when measured against several of Florida’s variables. However, we test his hypotheses empirically and find they have only limited validity.

Part 7: Unrealized Potential: High Technology In Hampton Roads, Regional Studies Institute, Old Dominion University

State of the Region Reports: Hampton Roads

On the face of it, Hampton Roads ought to be a technological powerhouse because of the high-level federal research facilities and defense installations located in the area, plus a higher education community of considerable size. Yet, while we can claim the second-greatest technological development of any region in the Commonwealth, we are a very distant second to Northern Virginia and have never realized our potential. Future prosperity in technology is tied to developing the modeling and simulation industry that has sprouted primarily in Suffolk, stimulating Eastern Virginia Medical School’s potential in conjunction with Old Dominion University and vastly increasing support …

Seasonal Variability Of Near-Surface Hydrography And Frontal Features In The Northern Gulf Of Alaska And Prince William Sound, Stephen R. Okkonen, David L. Cutchin, Thomas Royer

CCPO Publications

The meridional structure and seasonal cycles of near-surface hydrography and frontal features in the northern Gulf of Alaska and Prince William Sound are described from high-resolution measurements of near-surface temperature and salinity acquired by a vessel-mounted thermosalinograph. Near-surface temperature exhibits a well-defined seasonal cycle with little variation between basin and shelf waters. Near-surface salinity exhibits a well-defined seasonal cycle that is confined largely to the shelf waters reflecting the influence of coastal freshwater inputs. Prominent near-surface fronts at the shelf break, at the entrance to Prince William Sound, and in northern Prince William Sound intensify and weaken following the seasonal …

Nanosecond Pulsed Electric Fields: A New Stimulus To Activate Intracellular Signaling, Stephen J. Beebe, Karl H. Schoenbach

Bioelectrics Publications

When new technologies are introduced into the scientific community, controversy is expected and both excitement and disappointment enrich the lives of those who initiate the new ideas. It becomes the mission of the “inventors” to embrace the burden of proof to establish their ideas and convince the skeptics and disbelievers who will undoubtedly temper their enthusiasm and test their patience. While open mindedness is generally a scientific motto, those who review patents, manuscripts, and grants do not always readily practice it, even when the evidence is convincingly presented; old ideas and concepts often die hard. So it has been and …

Bioprospecting, Philip A. Reed

STEMPS Faculty Publications

The article discusses that the product applications of bioprospecting are almost limitless. This area of biotechnology has been labeled bioprospecting, and it is a practice that is creating worldwide controversy. Defined simply, bioprospecting is "scientific research that looks for a useful application, process, or product in nature." However, as with most biotechnologies, the definition does not address the complexities of bioprospecting. Archeologists are finding that some biotechnologies, such as the use of herbs for medicine and the use of fermentation and yeast in food products, date back 5,000 to 10,000 years (De Miranda, 2004). The four main categories of biotechnologies …