Digital Commons Network^™

Faculty Senate Meeting Minutes Dec 1, 2006, A-State Faculty Senate

Faculty Senate Minutes

No abstract provided.

At Issue: Towards An Authentic Technological Literacy, Charles W. Gagel

Journal of STEM Teacher Education

No abstract provided.

Tracing And Replay Of Real-Time Concurrent Programs In Vxworks, Daxa Keshavji Patel

Computer Science and Engineering Theses - Archive

Real-time concurrent programs are difficult to analyze, debug and test because of the existence of race conditions. In particular, cyclic debugging requires the ability to reproduce a failed execution. That is, when a failure is observed during a test run, it is often necessary to reproduce the test run as an effort to locate the bug that has caused the failure. However because of the variations in thread scheduling and signal latency, a real-time concurrent execution may not be reproduced simply by re-executing the program under test. In this thesis, we describe a language-based framework for tracing and replay of …

Performance Analysis Of The Beacon Period Contraction Mechanism In Wimedia Mac For Uwb, Shenjin Sun

Computer Science and Engineering Theses - Archive

The WiMedia MAC for UWB based WPANs is currently preferred among standards for wireless network since it requires non-infrastructure for ad hoc network, and also supports for Quality of Service (QoS). Without infrastructure, coordination of devices within radio range is achieved by the exchange of beacon frames, which is an overhead in WiMedia MAC, since no data transmission is allowed during Beacon Period (BP). In a dynamic network, devices might leave or join in, so beacon slots will be released or reoccupied with the changing of network. And BP contraction mechanism is aimed at reusing the released beacon slots in …

Retaining Information Technology Employees In Higher Education, Mary Holmes

Dissertations

The retention of qualified Information Technology (IT) employees is at an all time low within higher education institutions. IT personnel are essential for higher education institutions to effectively integrate technology into their educational programs. These IT employees contribute to their institution's teaching/learning mission, while simultaneously supporting complex and highly visible administrative operations. Yet, all previous research regarding IT employee retention issues had only been conducted within corporate settings.

To examine factors related to IT employees' retention within public higher education, an internet-based study was sent to IT employees in all four-year public universities throughout Michigan. The survey included questions within …

Dynamics Of Random Boolean Networks Governed By A Generalization Of Rule 22 Of Elementary Cellular Automata., Gary L. Beck

Student Work

This study considers a simple Boolean network with N nodes, each node's state at time t being determined by a certain number of k parent nodes. The network is analyzed when the connectivity k is fixed or variable. This is an extension of a model studied by Andrecut [4) who considered the dynamics of two stochastic coupled maps. Making use of the Boolean rule that is a generalization of Rule 22 of elementary cellular automata, a generalization of the formula for providing the probability of finding a node in state 1 at a time t is determined and used to …

Phylogenetics Of North American Psoraleeae (Leguminosae): Rates And Dates In A Recent, Rapid Radiation, Ashley N. Egan

Theses and Dissertations

The scientific discipline of phylogenetics involves understanding the diversity of life in the context of history. Technological advances in molecular biology and computational power have created an exponential increase in the number and kind of phylogenetic studies, allowing exploration of all manner of questions concerning the evolutionary history of a group. This dissertation research is focused on phylogenetic theory and applying these methods to the plant tribe Psoraleeae (Leguminosae; Fabaceae) with an emphasis on North American (NAm) members. First, theory of phylogeny estimation is explored in a review chapter focusing on strengths and weaknesses of phylogenetic methodology. Second, methods are …

Decision Support Systems In Product Development: A Batesian Network Approach For Injection-Molded Products, Jason S. Trahan

Dissertations

Attribute defects cause a majority of the scrap for many manufacturers injection-molding aesthetic parts, yet these defects receive little attention duringproduct development. Methods for preventing attribute defects have been hampered by the inability to quantify complex cause-effect relationships. However, the qualities of a burgeoning branch of knowledge-based systems, called Bayesian networks, have benefited various fields faced with similar circumstances.Bayesian networks have the capability of presenting causal relationships between variables in a graphical structure and quantitatively explaining their effects throughout that structure. These effects can be characterized by probabilities derived from sources, such as equations, historical data, rules-of-thumb or expert knowledge. …

Investigation Of Oxy-Anion Legand Adsorption Onto Surfaces Of Iron Oxide And Bacteria In Groundwater Aquifers, Haile Mengistu

Dissertations

We have measured adsorption of dissolved phosphate onto synthetic hydrous ferric oxide (HFO), dissolved arsenate and chromate onto the cell membrane of a bacterium species, S. putrefaciens as a function of pH, ionic strength, and relative concentrations of the respective oxy-ligands. Our experimental data were used to constrain optimal values for surface complexation reactions involving dissolved oxi-ligands (phosphate, and chromate) and the HFO surface and the cell membrane of S. putrefaciens respectively according to the diffuse layer model.

Our results provide a more accurate fit to experimental measurements over a broader range of pH (3 - 12), ionic strength and …

Emergence Of Equality As A Constitutional Value: The First Century, William M. Wiecek

Chicago-Kent Law Review

Equality as a constitutional value was unprecedented when it made its appearance in 1868 in the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. It reflected antebellum abolitionist ideals adopted hesitantly by Northern Republicans during Reconstruction, but these were incompatible with the expectations of most white Americans of the era, as well as with all previous American experiences. In this sense, equality was a revolutionary constitutional value. The framers of the Fourteenth Amendment intended the Equal Protection Clause and its embedded ideal of interracial equality to reverse the racist dicta of the Dred Scott opinion, to validate the Civil Rights Act …

Mesospheric Gravity Waves Observed Near Equatorial And Low-Middle Latitude Stations: Wave Characteristics And Reverse Ray Tracing Results, C. M. Wrasse, T. Nakamura, H. Takahshi, A. F. Medeiros, Michael J. Taylor, D. Gobi, C. M. Denardini, J. Fechine, R. A. Buriti, A. Salatun, Suratno, E. Achmad, A. G. Admiranto

All Physics Faculty Publications

Gravity wave signatures were extracted from OH airglow observations using all-sky CCD imagers at four different stations: Cachoeira Paulista (CP) (22.7° S, 45° W) and São João do Cariri (7.4° S, 36.5° W), Brazil; Tanjungsari (TJS) (6.9° S, 107.9° E), Indonesia and Shigaraki (34.9° N, 136° E), Japan. The gravity wave parameters are used as an input in a reverse ray tracing model to study the gravity wave vertical propagation trajectory and to estimate the wave source region. Gravity waves observed near the equator showed a shorter period and a larger phase velocity than those waves observed at low-middle latitudes. …

Neural Network Burst Pressure Prediction In Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessels From Acoustic Emission Data, Seth-Andrew T. Dion

Master's Theses - Daytona Beach

Composites have grown in importance in the aerospace industry where high specific strength is a priority. Weight reduction in space vehicles is critical because of the exorbitant cost associated with placing objects into space. Major weight savings have been obtained by switching from all metal pressure vessels to composite overwrapped pressure vessels (COPVs). Due to the nature of composites, current nondestructive analysis procedures for COPVs are not adequate for assessing structural integrity. As such, new methods must be developed. Presented herein is one such method.

A method for burst pressure prediction using parametric filtering of acoustic emission (AE) data along …

Novel Functions And Physiological Significance Of Ral Interacting Protein - Rlip76 In In Vitro And In Vivo Models, Ewa L. Zajac

Chemistry & Biochemistry Dissertations - Archive

This dissertation is divided into four parts. The first part is an introduction of energy dependent xenobiotic transporters and their relevance in multidrug resistance. However, the main focuse is the description of RLIP76 protein, non-ABC transporter, which it the most efficient transporter of glutathione conjugates and anti-cancer drugs. The second part describes materials and methods that were used in two investigated projects. The third part explains the correlation of RLIP76 with signaling protein POB1 and an involvement of these two proteins in apoptosis of lung cancer cells. The effect of recombinant POB1 and its deletion mutant POB11-512, on transport activity …

Acknowledgements, The Mcnair Team

McNair Scholars Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Mcnair Scholars Program, The Mcnair Team

McNair Scholars Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Syllable Systems : Four Students' Experiences In Learning Rhythm., Tammy Renee Fust

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This qualitative study examines the effect of two different syllable counting systems on four sixth-grade band students. The goal of this study was to see the differences and similarities between rhythm learning and performance between these students in four related case studies. During a series of five lessons, students spent time with the researcher individually exploring rhythm reading and performing on their instrument. Two of the students were taught to count rhythms with the "takadimi" rhythm syllable system as developed by Richard Hoffman, William Pelto, and John White. The other two students counted rhythms using the traditional "l-e-&-a" system of …

Effective Teaching Of African American Students Who Receive Special Education Services., Nancy Stone Bealmear

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is an examination of effective teaching of African American students who receive special education services by teachers who are either National Board Certified Teachers or Highly Qualified Master's Level teachers. It begins with an overview of the history of special education in the United States and the current conditions of special education. It then covers the matter of overrepresentation of African American students in special education and the various contributors to that problem. The conceptual framework is to examine the self-efficacy and best practices of National Board Certified Teachers or Highly Qualified Master's Level teachers from middle and …

A Programmable Mask For Direct Write Lithography., Kunal Pharas 1979-

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Lithographic processes for printing device structures on integrated circuits plays a major role in the semiconductor industry. This project aims at designing and fabricating a programmable mask for a direct write lithography system which can achieve higher throughput at a reasonable cost for the semiconductor industry in the future. The device has apertures of different sizes which can be used as programmable masks by opening and closing the shutters over them. The shutters are actuated by electrostatic comb drive actuators which are microfabricated nickel structures electroplated on copper over a sacrificial layer and are released later by a sacrificial etch. …

Don't Be A Phish: Steps In User Education, Stefan Robila, James W. Ragucci

Department of Computer Science Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Phishing, e-mails sent out by hackers to lure unsuspecting victims into giving up confidential information, has been the cause of countless security breaches and has experienced in the last year an increase in frequency and diversity. While regular phishing attacks are easily thwarted, designing the attack to include user context information could potentially increase the user's vulnerability. To prevent this, phishing education needs to be considered. In this paper we provide an overview of phishing education, focusing on context aware attacks and introduce a new strategy for educating users by combining phishing IQ tests and class discussions. The technique encompasses …

Societal Aspects Of Phishing, James W. Ragucci, Stefan Robila

Department of Computer Science Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

The damage caused by phishing does not only apply to monetary property alone. The fragile bonds of trust that organizations build with their constituents are shattered in the process. As people loss faith in the reliability of electronic communication methods, companies loss their customer base. In the case disasters, people can spend billions in preparation, to analyze weaknesses and improve recovery time, only to have thrust shattered by phishing attacks. This in turn causes a significant loss in money, resources and time. In this study we review the main characteristics of phishing attacks and their impact to society. Based on …

Marine Sediment Record From The East Antarctic Margin Reveals Dynamics Of Ice Sheet Recession, Amy Leventer, Eugene Domack, Jennifer Pike, Catherine Stickley, Eleanor Maddison, Stefanie A. Brachfeld, Patricia Manley, Charlie Mcclennen

Department of Earth and Environmental Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

The Antarctic shelf is traversed by large-scale troughs developed by glacial erosion. Swath bathymetric, lithologic, and chronologic data from jumbo piston cores from four sites along the East Antarctic margin (Iceberg Alley, the Nielsen Basin, the Svenner Channel, and the Mertz-Ninnis Trough) are used to demonstrate that these cross-shelf features controlled development of calving bay reentrants in the Antarctic ice sheet during deglaciation. At all sites except the Mertz-Ninnis Trough, the transition between the Last Glacial Maximum and the Holocene is characterized by varved couplets deposited during a short interval of extremely high primary productivity in a fjordlike setting. Nearly …

Geometry Of Minimal Flows, William Basener

Articles

Our main result is that a minimal flow on a compact manifold is either topologically conjugate to a Riemannian flow or every parametrization of φ is nowhere equicontinuous, defined as follows. A flow is Riemannian if given any points x, y ∈ M , the value of d(φt (x), φt (y)) is independent of t ∈ R . A flow is nowhere equicontinuous if there exists an

Sagp Newsletter 2006/7.1 (December), Anthony Preus

The Society for Ancient Greek Philosophy Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Message From The Provost, The Mcnair Team

McNair Scholars Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Notes From The Director, The Mcnair Team

McNair Scholars Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Full Issue, The Mcnair Team

McNair Scholars Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Evaluating Diet Composition Of Pronghorn In Wind Cave National Park, South Dakota, Christopher N. Jacques, Jaret D. Sievers, Jonathan A. Jenks, Chad L. Sexton, Daniel E. Roddy

The Prairie Naturalist

The pronghorn (Antilocapra americana) was reintroduced into Wind Cave National Park (WCNP), South Dakota, in 1914, and thus, has inhabited the Park for nearly a century. During the 1990's, a decline in the population raised concern for the continued existence of pronghorn inside WCNP; an investigation into the observed decline was initiated. Primary objectives of our study were to evaluate diet composition and forage selection by pronghorn in WCNP. Microhistological analysis was conducted on 58 fecal samples collected opportunistically from pronghorn during 2002. Blue grama (Bouteloua gracilis), common juniper (Juniperus communis), and northern bedstraw …

The Prairie Naturalist, Volume 38, Number 4, December 2006, Elmer J. Finck, Hilary Gillock

The Prairie Naturalist

Full issue of The Prairie Naturalist (December 2006), volume 38, number 4.

Amphibians and Reptiles in a MixedGrass Prairie in Northwestern North Dakota by Robert K. Murphy, Robert F. Danley, and Patricia K. Moore, pages 207-212

Morphometrics of Six Turtle Species from South Dakota by Sarah J. Bandas and Kenneth F. Higgins, pages 213-222

Evaluation of Habitat Enhancement Structure Use by Spotted Bass by Stanley L. Proboszcz and Christopher S. Guy, pages 223-238

Evaluating Diet Composition of Pronghorn in Wind Cave National Park, South Dakota by Christopher N. Jacques , Jaret D. Sievers, Jonathan A. Jenks, Chad L. Sexton, and …

Evaluation Of Habitat Enhancement Structure Use By Spotted Bass, Stanley L. Proboszcz, Christopher S. Guy

The Prairie Naturalist

Habitat enhancement is a common and effective method used to positively influence fish populations. However, there is a paucity of speciesspecific evaluations of stream habitat enhancement structures for warmwater fishes. We evaluated use of half-log, rootwad enhancement structure, and simulated undercut bank (LUNKERS) by adult and juvenile spotted bass (Micropterus punctulatus) in natural and experimental streams. Enhancement structures were installed in Otter Creek, Kansas. Adult spotted bass use of natural and enhancement structure was documented weekly during summer and fall of 2001 and 2002 with radiotelemetry. Mean total length (TL) of adult fish was 292 mm (SE = …

Computationally Modeling The Effects Of Surface Roughness On Soft X-Ray Multilayer Reflectors, Jedediah Edward Jensen Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

Electromagnetic scattering from a rough two dimensional homogeneous scatterer has been computationally modeled. The scatterer is intended to simulate reflection from a two interface multilayer. The rough scatterer was created from Gaussian random points centered about an ideal interface. The points were connected with a third order spline interpolant which accounts for correlation between neighboring surface atoms. The scalar electric field integral equation (EFIE) and magnetic field integral equation (MFIE) were solved using the Nystrom method to obtain the reflected intensity as a function of observation angle. Verification of the accuracy of the code was obtained by means of comparison …