Digital Commons Network^™

Effects Of An Upbeat And Positive Attitude In Customer Service Interactions, Brent Pritchett

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In an extension of research demonstrating the effects of an upbeat and positive attitude in customer service interactions, the experiment and case studies examined in this paper identified evidence in support of displaying a positive behavior during customer service interactions. In the experiment, casino table game dealers were identified that exuded a consistent upbeat and positive attitude. These dealers were compared to other dealers who were inconsistent in their behavior. The experiment revealed that dealers, who engaged customers with a positive attitude, earned more in tipped income. In a series of case studies, service surveys were taken from customers that …

The Relationship Between International Expansion And Firm Performance: An Investigation Of U.S.-Based Restaurants And Firms, Soyeon Jung

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This study has three objectives. First, based on the above argument, this study aims to examine whether there is an association between international expansion and U.S.-based restaurants performance in terms of accounting-based measures. Second, this study intends to examine how the performance of service firms will indeed change within an observed time frame of international expansion. Finally, the research hopes to provide insights and assistance both to academics and to company strategists who are in charge of the international operations of service firms.

An Analysis Of The Environmental Content Of Las Vegas Strip Hotels, Andrew M. Levey

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This study examines the environmental content of hotel properties websites. The central question of this study is whether Las Vegas Strip properties have gone green, or plan to go green. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to examine the frequency of the environmental content of twenty-three Las Vegas Strip hotels’ websites as well as five upcoming hotel projects and one hotel expansion project on the Strip. The twenty-eight hotels are all located along Las Vegas Boulevard, also known as the Strip. All properties examined have over two thousand rooms each. The goal is to determine how prevalent and important …

High Occupancy Strategy At Thehotel: Is It Worth The Negative Impacts?, Joe Tidwell

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

THEhotel in Las Vegas, Nevada operates on a high occupancy throughout the year. Taking advantage of traffic flow through other areas of the property while maintaining a high reputation for customer service on the rooms side is the most efficient way to produce profit that will please the executive team, the guests, the employees and the shareholders of MGM Mirage.

Mapk Survival Signaling In Melanoma, Matthew W. Vanbrocklin

Dissertations

Extracellular signals activate mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascades potentiating biological activities such as cell proliferation, differentiation, and survival. Constitutive activation of MAPK signaling pathways is implicated in the development and progression of many human cancers, including melanoma. Mutually exclusive activating mutations in NRAS or BRAF are found in ∼85% of all melanomas resulting in constitutive activation of the MAPK pathway (RAS-BRAF-MEK-ERK-RSK). We have previously demonstrated that inhibition of this pathway with small molecule MEK inhibitors selectively induces apoptosis in human melanoma cells both in vitro and in vivo, but not in normal melanocytes. These results support the notion that the …

University Reporter - Volume 12, Number 04 - December 2007

1996-2009, University Reporter

This issue of the University Reporter includes articles about J. Keith Motley’s appointment as UMass Boston’s Eighth chancellor, the University's involvement with OpenCourseWare initiatives, a celebration of Native American heritage on campus, the Gastón Institute's analysis of community responses to recent immigration raids, and other news from UMass Boston.

And They Were There -- Reports Of Meetings -- 27th Annual Charleston Conference, Ramune K. Kubilius

Against the Grain

No abstract provided.

Panorama December 2007, Southern Adventist University

Panorama Parent Newsletter

This issue of the Panorama parent newsletter highlights student missions, provides information on counseling and tutoring services, and profiles the Psychology Club and Students in Free Enterprise.

An Empirical Dependence Mesaures Based On Residual Variance Estimation, Nima Reyhani, Amaury Lendasse

Engineering Management and Systems Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

In This Paper, a Solution to Empirical Dependency Measure is Proposed. the Main Idea is to Use the Notion of Predictability as a Basis for Dependency Definition. Considering Any Nonlinear Regression Function between Two Random Variables, the Power of Regression Residuals or Noise Variance Defines the Desired Dependency Measure. the Residuals Variance Can Be Directly Computed by Estimators Without Finding the Best Fit Curve. the Paper Shows the Conditions on Which Two Random Variables Are Independent According to the Estimated Residuals Variance. the Existence of Residual Variance, or Noise Variance Estimators Make It Possible to Define Such Practical Measure for …

Mycorrhizal Fungi In Epiphytic And Terrestrial Oerstedella Exasperata (Orchidaceae), December 2007, Nicole M. Williams

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

All orchids have a relationship with mycorrhizae during germination. Nutrient availability in soils often determines whether these relationships are maintained into adulthood. The aim of this study was to investigate the frequency of mycorrhizae infection in epiphytic and terrestrial Oerstedella exasperata. Since orchids that are rooted in the ground may have greater access to, or more consistent supplies of, nutrients I predicted that mycorrhizae would be found less often in terrestrial individuals. Furthermore, since plant fitness may be affected by the presence or absence of mycorrhizae or the availability of nutrients, fitness of epiphytic and terrestrial plants, with and without …

The Role Of Cyanide In Oviposition By Heliconius (Nymphalidae: Heliconiinae) On Passiflora (Passifloraceae), December 2007, Zach Sheff

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

Vines of the Passifloraceae contain cyanide that deters most potential herbivores but not Heliconius spp. (Nymphalidae: Heliconiinae). Despite their ability to cope with cyanide in Passifloraceae, Heliconius spp may preferentially oviposit on leaves with lower cyanide concentrations, as young larval stages may still be subject to toxicity. Leaf samples both with and without eggs were collected from Passiflora spp. from the Monteverde Butterfly Garden and were assayed for cyanide concentration. There was no significant relationship between cyanide concentration and oviposition (mean concentration with eggs = 6.04 + 9.41 (μg/mg), mean concentration = 11.13 + 18.84 (μg/mg); t = 1.15, p …

Selection For Survival: Soil Grain Size Preference And Body Size In Wormlion (Vermilio Sp.) Larvae Affect Pit Trap Construction, December 2007, Alice Mccarthy

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

Sessile predatory larvae rely on their habitats to provide biotic and abiotic factors needed for sufficient prey capture. I examined the hypothesis that for Vermilio sp. (wormlion) larvae, body size and soil grain size affect pit trap size and prey capture efficiency. At the Estación Biológica de Monteverde in Costa Rica. I measured and compared larva size versus pit trap size, put larvae in containers with half fine grain soil (< 2 mm) and half coarse grain soil (2mm to 6mm), tested for preference, and compared size of pit traps constructed in the two soil types. I also dropped ants into pits and measured time to escape and frequency of capture by the larvae. Pit trap size was positively correlated with larva size. Larvae preferred fine grain soil over coarse grain soil ( χ2 = 45.08, df = 1, P < 0.01) and constructed traps less often in coarse grain soil. I found no difference between pit trap sizes in fine and coarse grain soil, yet sample size was small and I noted the trend that ants remained trapped in fine grain soil longer than in coarse grain soil. Preference for fine grain soil indicates habitat selection of larval Vermilio sp. for areas that increase prey capture, therefore promoting the survival of the species.

Ecotourism As A Driver Of Forest Conservation On Small Farms In Costa Rica, December 2007, Sarah Owens

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

Conservation of fragmented forest on private land is instrumental to long-term protection of tropical biodiversity. However, few incentives exist for small landowners to conserve. This study addresses ecotourism as an incentive for forest fragment conservation. Small farmers were interviewed to determine the extent of land in regeneration or protection and the ecotouristic activities on each property. The data suggest that a greater percentage of land is in regeneration on farms with small-scale tourism (20% + 10.1) than on farms with large-scale tourism (12% + 6.0) and no tourism (5% + 2.1; Kruskal-Wallis Test, H = 6.0673, p = 0.0481, N …

Differential Aboveground Adventitious Root Production By Senecio Cooperi (Asteraceae), December 2007, Nathan J. Ebnet

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

Previous studies have suggested that aboveground adventitious roots (AARs) are produced by plants in order to extract nutrients from the epiphytes they support (Nadkarni 1981 & 1984). I asked whether Senecio cooperi, a neotropical plant which produces AARs, generates these roots for nutrient absorption, fragmentation establishment, or structural support. I conducted a survey in which I measured multiple characteristics of S. cooperi and their AARs in Monteverde, Costa Rica. Naturally fragmented stems produced more AARs than expected by chance (x2 = 12.80, df = 1, p < 0.05). No purely vertical stems contained AARs associated with the moss mats growing on them. However, vertical stems displayed basal AARs which increased in diameter as both plant height and DBH increased (R2 = 0.330, P < 0.001, N = 50, R2 = 0.402, P < 0.0001, N = 50 respectively). These findings suggest that the naturally occurring role of AARs of S. cooperi are not for nutrient absorption, but rather for structural support and fragmentation regeneration. These functions of AARs allow S. cooperi to be more successful as a pioneer species in disturbed habitats, and highlight the need to reevaluate the functionality of AARs among other plants.

Large Energy Gaps In Cac₆ From Tunneling Spectroscopy: Possible Evidence Of Strong-Coupling Superconductivity, Cihan Kurter, Lutfi Ozyuzer, Daniel Mazur, John F. Zasadzinski, Daniel Rosenmann

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

Tunneling in CaC₆ crystals reproducibly reveals superconducting gaps Δ of 2.3±0.2 meV that are ~40% larger than reported earlier. In an isotropic s -wave scenario, that puts CaC₆ into the class of very strongly coupled superconductors, since 2Δ k Tc ~4.6, implying that soft Ca phonons are primarily involved in the superconductivity. This conclusion explains the relatively large Ca isotope effect found recently for CaC₆, but it could also signal a strong anisotropy in the electron-phonon interaction.

Entrainment And Stimulated Emission Of Ultrasonic Piezoelectric Auto-Oscillators, Richard L. Weaver, Oleg I. Lobkis, Alexey Yamilov

Physics Faculty Research & Creative Works

Theoretical modeling and laboratory tests are conducted for nonlinear auto-oscillating piezoelectric ultrasonic devices coupled to reverberant elastic bodies. the devices are shown to exhibit behavior familiar from the theory of coupled auto-oscillators. in particular, these spontaneously emitting devices adjust their limit-cycle frequency to the spectrum of the body. It is further shown that the auto-oscillations can be entrained by an applied field; an incident wave at a frequency close to the frequency of the natural limit cycle entrains the oscillator. Special attention is paid to the phase of entrainment. Depending on details, the phase is such that the oscillator can …

Cultural Disparities Of Sat Scores And The Influence On Higher Education Opportunities For African American And Latino Students, Nichelle Hoover

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

Inequalities in the distribution of education resources and cultural identification can lead to lower SAT scores for African American and Latino students. By using SAT scores as one of the primary sources to determine admission to institutions of higher education, educators may be denying minority students admission to a variety of colleges and universities, depriving the student of his or her best choice and the college of an engaged and diverse student body, and contributing to the perpetuation of inequalities in the system. The evidence contained in this literature review shows that, given the current system, those students' SAT scores …

Diffusion-Free Back Contact Solar Cells On S-Passivated Si(100) Substrates, Guanghua Song

Material Science and Engineering Dissertations - Archive

A diffusion-free back contact solar cell is proposed in this work. The textured front-side of this cell is coated with ~100 nm thermal SiO2 to enhance the light trapping meanwhile reduce the surface recombination velocity (SRV). The back-side of this cell is finger-patterned, using a diffusion-free junction as its emitter region and Al-Si alloy as its base contact. The diffusion-free junction is made by a Schottky contact between low work-function metal aluminum (Al) and sulfur (S)-passivated p-type Si(100) surface. Solution-based S passivation is one of the experimental realizations of the "valence-mending concept". Previously developed MBE (molecular bean epitaxy) selenium (Se) …

Reformed Worship (Rw) 86 - Lent / Easter (December 2007), Reformed Worship Editors

Reformed Worship Magazine

Features

Dust off Those Bells! by Phillip M. Hash....3

The Love of God by Mary Sytsma....6

Participating in the Passion by Scott Lammers....8

Were You There? by Alex Gondola....12

From Burdened to Blessed by Stanley J. Groothof and Curt Gesch....20

Early in the Morning by Cheri TerHaar....22

In the Fullness of Time, Part 2 by Lisa De Boer....24

Praying the Lord's Prayer During Lent by Laura and Robert Keeley....32

Liturgy: A Public Service by Karen Bokma and Mike Hogeterp....36

God's Eye Is on the Refugee by Sonya Vanderveen Feddma....38

Beautiful …

Phase Iii Development Of A Short-Radius Guardrail For Intersecting Roadways, Cody S. Stolle, Karla A. Polivka, Robert W. Bielenberg, Ronald K. Faller, Dean L. Sicking, John R. Rohde, John D. Reid

Nebraska Department of Transportation: Research Reports

No abstract provided.

Development Of A Tl-5 Vertical Faced Concrete Median Barrier Incorporating Head Ejection Criteria, Scott Rosenbaugh, Dean L. Sicking, Ronald K. Faller

Nebraska Department of Transportation: Research Reports

No abstract provided.

Investing In Air Transport - A Prudent Move, Ruwantissa Abeyratnre

Transportation Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Authentic Expression Of Edmund Rice Christian Brother Education, Raymond J. Vercruysse

Journal of Catholic Education

The Congregation of Christian Brothers (CFC), a religious community which continues to sponsor and staff Catholic high schools, began in Ireland with the vision of Edmund Rice. This article surveys biographical information about the founder and details ongoing discussions within the community directed toward preserving and growing Rice’s vision in contemporary Catholic schools.

On The Origin And Intent Of The Quaker Women's Meeting: Promoting And Preserving The Influence Of Women During And Beyond The Period Of Institutionalization, John Ross

Doctor of Ministry

The Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) had as a hallmark from its inception, a strong commitment to egalitarian theology and practice. As the movement took shape in the 1640s and 50s, women were prominent among their preachers, leaders, and evangelists. As the Quakers began to institutionalize in the 1660s, women Friends were in real danger of being marginalized, their voices lost behind a complex system of meetings for business and government. The answer proposed by Quaker leaders George Fox and Margaret Fell was the Women's Meeting. These meetings, settled throughout England and eventually throughout the world, mirrored the monthly, quarterly, …

Localization Of Biliary Tree Structures By Use Of Photon Diffusion Models, Dharmendra Nadkar

Bioengineering Theses - Archive

A novel computational methodology is proposed for the intraoperative localization of biliary tree structures by means of spectrally resolved near-infrared reflectance measurements. As these structures are embedded in fatty tissue, they cannot be visualized directly, which results in inadvertent injuries during a cholecystectomy operation. Localizing the biliary tree intraoperatively is therefore an important clinical problem. Successful clinical implementation of an imaging system which could attain this goal would reduce surgical time, improve patient safety, and minimize the risk of complications and expenses attributable to the current standard practice of intraoperative cholangiography. It is hoped that the work presented here will …

Ultrastructure Study Of Postmenopausal Endometria Of Tibolone, Conjugated Estrogen + Medroxyprogesterone Acetate And Tamoxifen Users, Tuncay Nas, Mustafa F. Sargon, Hamdi H. Celik, Pinar O. Keskin, Rifat H. Gursoy, Kutay Biberoglu

Saudi Medical Journal

No abstract provided.

The Role Of Ultrasonography And Computed Tomography In Determining The Etiology Of Ascites, Naile B. Topal, Selim Gurel, Ilker Ercan, Gursel Savci

Saudi Medical Journal

OBJECTIVE: To determine the role of ultrasonography (US) and computed tomography (CT) in the evaluation of ascites etiology. METHODS: From 2000-2006, patients admitted to the Radiology Department, Uludag University Medical School Hospital, Bursa, Turkey, were studied to determine the etiology of ascites, or those in whom ascites was determined during the course of other investigations were evaluated using US and CT. Existence of septa-debris, accompanying organ pathology, omental involvement, intestinal wall thickening, peritoneal implant, lymph node, diameter of portal vein, thickening of gall bladder wall, pleural effusion, collateral vascular structure, and cavernous transformation were also investigated. RESULTS: A total of …

Metformin Discontinuation Rate Among Patients With Type-2 Diabetes Mellitus In Basrah, Iraq, Abbas A. Mansour, Omran S. Habib

Saudi Medical Journal

No abstract provided.

A Senior Recital, Lohol Gonzales, Kanako Yamazaki, Mika Brunson

Senior Recitals

Program listing performers and works performed

Sales Opportunity Crafting: Explaining How Salespeople Craft Value Propositions In Business-To-Business Selling, Ganesh Kumar

Student Scholarship

This paper examines the spontaneous, situational, adaptive capabilities in successful business-to-business salespeople. Salespeople craft appropriate sales value propositions that resonate with buyers to achieve a sale. Findings indicate sales value propositions occur in four distinct patterns, as a combination of a salespeople’s choice in emphasizing the value of their relationship and/or the solution itself. This paper combines contingency selling approaches with job crafting to suggest a new construct—“sales opportunity crafting (SOC)”—to explain how salespeople frame a sales opportunity and then decide on a sales value positioning response. The suggested model highlights the role of antecedents— such as influence over customers’ …