Digital Commons Network^™

Improving The Ocean Initialization Of Coupled Hurricane–Ocean Models Using Feature-Based Data Assimilation, Richard M. Yablonsky, Isaac Ginis

Graduate School of Oceanography Faculty Publications

Coupled hurricane–ocean forecast models require proper initialization of the ocean thermal structure. Here, a new feature-based (F-B) ocean initialization procedure in the GFDL/University of Rhode Island (URI) coupled hurricane prediction system is presented to account for spatial and temporal variability of mesoscale oceanic features in the Gulf of Mexico, including the Loop Current (LC), Loop Current eddies [i.e., warm-core rings (WCRs)], and cold-core rings (CCRs). Using only near-real-time satellite altimetry for the “SHA-assimilated” case, the LC, a single WCR, and a single CCR are assimilated into NAVOCEANO’s Global Digitized Environmental Model (GDEM) ocean temperature and salinity climatology along with satellite-derived …

Roots And Remedies Of Ginseng Poaching In Central Appalachia, Randi Jeannine Pokladnik

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Ginseng, panax quinquefolius, is a perennial plant found in the understory growth of mesophytic forests of Appalachia. Illegal harvesting of the plant from both wild and cultivated populations has become very problematic for public land managers and private landowners engaged in cultivation of the species. Techniques aimed at curtailing the incidents of poaching have only been moderately successful. Given the economic value of the plant, its cultural significance, and the dramatic decrease of wild plant populations, it has become increasingly important to address this problem.

Several studies have linked illegal wildlife harvesting to economic problems, inadequate policies or laws, and …

Dwelling, Walking, Serving: Organic Preservation Along The Camino De Santiago Pilgrimage Landscape, Mercedes Chamberlain Quesada-Embid

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This study is an exploration of the people and the landscape of the well-known Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route. Although there are many routes that make up the entirety of the pilgrimage, this research is specifically focused on the landscape of the Camino Francés, or French Route, in northern Spain. The path has been written about in many ways and for a myriad of reasons since it became affiliated with the Christian tradition in the early ninth century. This research, however, is different. By way of an environmental history and hermeneutic approach, an investigation of the interrelated and overlapping human …

Front Matter

Intercultural Human Rights Law Review

Front Matter includes Masthead, advisors, and Table of Contents for the Intercultural Human Rights Law Review Volume 3 (2008).

Indigenous Languages Under Siege: The Native American Experience, Allison M. Dussias

Intercultural Human Rights Law Review

How have Native American languages, like the languages of other indigenous peoples around the world, arrived at this crisis stage? Is this simply the result of the passage of time, in an environment in which non-Native American society's sheer numbers, and its ever-present English-language media, including the "cultural nerve gas of television, inevitably swamp Native American languages and lead to their replacement by English? Or has this situation resulted from more deliberate action on the part of the dominant society, acting through its laws and other mechanisms of government power? We should also ask, given that so many Native American …

International Trafficking In Persons: Suggested Responses To A Scourge Of Humankind, Franklyn M. Casale

Intercultural Human Rights Law Review

"International Trafficking in Persons: Suggested Responses to a Scourge of Humankind", a statement presented by Rev. Monsignor Franklyn M. Casale (St. Thomas University President) to the Distinguished Members of the United States House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs.

Introductory Remarks, Siegfried Wiessner

Intercultural Human Rights Law Review

Introductory remarks by Siegfried Wiessner, Professor of Law & Director, Graduate Program in Intercultural Human Rights, for the Intercultural Human Rights Law Review Annual Symposium.

Myspace Use As A Potentially Dysfunctional Internet Behavior, Linda Maria Anderson

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

As Internet use has increased, the use of social networking websites such as MySpace and Facebook has become widespread. This study examined the prevalence of dysfunctional Internet-related behaviors in a sample of 302 undergraduates with MySpace accounts. Dysfunctional Internet behaviors were assessed by a Dysfunctional Internet Use Scale (DIUS) developed by Morahan-Martin and Schumacher (2000), and dysfunctional Internet behaviors specifically related to MySpace were assessed by a separate instrument modeled on the DIUS, the Dysfunctional MySpace Use Scale (DMUS). According to criteria suggested by Morahan-Martin and Schumacher, the prevalence of dysfunctional Internet use in the present sample was 39.7%, and …

Developing Lexical Competition Resolution Mechanisms Through Reading Experiences, Ana B. Areas Da Luz Fontes

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The goal of the present study was to investigate whether competition resolution mechanisms are improved throughout a student's college years. For this purpose, I bilingual participants with a range in the number of college credits completed (e.g., freshmen to seniors) were recruited. Participants were presented with sentences that biased the less frequent, or subordinate meaning of an ambiguous word (e.g., novel, fast) (e.g., novel: something new; fast: to not eat). The ambiguous word was either a Spanish-English cognate (e.g., novel/novela) or a noncognate control (e.g., fast). These sentences were followed by target words that, on critical trials, were related to …

Attorneys' And Jurors' Perceptions Of Juvenile Offenders' Culpability, Catherine Camilletti

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Factors affecting attorneys' and mock jurors' perceptions of a juvenile offender's culpability were investigated. In study one, 30 attorneys from Texas responded to a survey in which they rated how likely 20 factors were to mitigate a juvenile offender's culpability in jurors' eyes. In study two, college students, serving as mock jurors, saw a photo of a juvenile offender and read a trial transcript. This study determined whether a juvenile offender's appearance (youthful vs. adult-like) and mock jurors' perceptions of the current crime trend would affect their verdict and sentence recommendations. Attorneys thought a juvenile offenders' youthful appearance would mitigate …

Regional Electricity In The United States, Sergio Luis Contreras

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Elasticity coefficients are estimated for the different regions in the United States. Residential, commercial, industrial, and the nonprofit sectors are examined. Demographic, climatic, and regional variables are used to estimate electricity demand. The negative income estimator that appears when paired with the number of households estimator implies that residential electricity is an inferior good. Even though it is a substitute good, natural gas does not show any significance for any sectors in the economy.

Unlocking Creativity In The Classroom, Rose Marie De La Cruz-Bechtel

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Creativity is a process involving skills that can be presented and strengthened in a classroom setting. An overview of various research strands regarding creativity since 1950 is included. The pragmatic approach of Roger von Oech forms the basis for a selection of strategies useful for unlocking and encouraging creative thinking in the 4-8 classroom.

Byzantium Beneath The Black Sea, Bridget Buxton, Robert Ballard, Michael Brennan, Dwight Coleman, Katy Croff, Christopher Roman, Dan Davis, Dennis Piechota, Sergiy Voronov

Graduate School of Oceanography Faculty Publications

This poster reports on the August 2007 Black Sea Expedition of the Institute for Archaeological Oceanography at the University of Rhode Island (IAO) and the Institute for Exploration (IFE), in collaboration with the Department of the Underwater Heritage of Ukraine. This year’s work marks a new phase in a multi-year (2000–2012) archaeological and oceanographic survey of the Black Sea. 2007 fieldwork focuses on two Byzantine shipwrecks. The 10th century C.E. shipwreck Chersonesos A (discovered in 2006) lies at 140 m depth in the suboxic zone off the Crimean peninsula. The ship carried a cargo of one-handled jars of a widely …

Evaluation Of An Image Processing Algorithm For Scene Change Detection, Daniel Flores

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Despite the efforts to reduce traffic accidents by government entities and automobile manufactures, the numbers of accidents are not considerably reduced. An evaluation of an algorithm based on the fly's eye is done on this research applying its principles to detect scene change on images for printed circuit boards providing initial steps to implement this algorithm on vehicular traffic to keep track of objects moving on the field for collision avoidance purposes. The effectiveness of the algorithm is addressed through a comparison of its performance with that found in experimental data.

Analysis Of Number And Mass Concentration Of Coarse And Fine, Nancy Garcia

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

There is currently much concern over particles suspended in the ambient air, their effects on people and the environment throughout the world. The suspended particles can cause adverse health effects, reduce visibility and over the course of time wear buildings. Primary air quality concerns are of particles, their effects and their key characteristics. Particle number concentration (NC) of traffic emissions is an important element of the study, specifically heavy duty diesel engine emissions. Particle number concentration is the number of particles of a specific size in a unit of air; in this study they are measured by the number of …

Perspectives Of White/Non-Hispanic Male Superintendents Of Majority-Hispanic School Districts In Texas, Samuel Franklin Hogue

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This study examines the dynamics and challenges which White/non-Hispanic male superintendents face in leading school districts where the majority of constituents come from a different ethnic or racial background than their own; specifically school districts where the constituency is majority Hispanic. It also identifies the career paths and educational experiences of value of White/non-Hispanic males who serve as superintendents of school districts with majority Hispanic student populations as well as ascertains the general leadership theories and/or styles these men subscribe.

This study advances the understanding of school leadership in majority Hispanic school districts that are led by White/non-Hispanic males, how …

An Examination Of Wind Band Transcriptions, Russell J. Houser

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

An examination of twenty-six wind band transcriptions from orchestral, operatic, keyboard and choral literature with the intent of identifying those characteristics and qualities which best preserve the intent and message of the original composition.

A Comparison Of The Profiles And Career Pathways, Terri Kaylene Jordan

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

ABSTRACT

Overview

The purpose of this descriptive study was to compare the personal characteristics and career pathways of the superintendents of the fifty largest public school districts in the United States and the chief executive officers (CEO's) of the top fifty Fortune 500 companies in the United States. The research questions that guided this study were: (1) What are the similarities and dissimilarities in the profiles of public school superintendents and CEO's of Fortune 500 companies? and, (2) What are the similarities and dissimilarities in the career pathways of public school superintendents and CEO's of Fortune 500 companies? Demographic information …

Motherhood:Portrayals In American Literature, Christine J. O'Leary

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this Thesis is to illustrate five categories of motherhood in American literature. The five categories chosen are: the self-absorbed mother, the self-martyred mother, the child-sacrificing mother, the self-sacrificing mother, and the substitute mother. I chose these five categories because they appear frequently in texts written by people of multiple ethnicities who represent several larger American cultures.

1. The self-absorbed mother lives for her personal pleasures. Her children are a burden. She prefers her happiness over the day to day care of the children.

2. The self-martyred mother believes that she is responsible for all the difficulties …

The Correlation Between Social Desirability And Endorsement Rate Of Test Items Using The Snap And Neo-Ffi, Cynthia Pedregon

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Classic studies in the 1950s indicated that endorsement rates of personality test items are very highly correlated with the items' social desirability (Edwards, 1953; Hanley, 1956). The present study attempted to recreate those findings using two contemporary personality tests: the NEO Five Factor Inventory short form (NEO-FFI) and 59 randomly selected items from the Schedule for Nonadaptive and Adaptive Personality (SNAP). Also included were 7 Rare Virtue items and 7 Common Fault items from the Multidimensional Personality Questionnaire, Brief Form. Participants (N = 286) were randomly assigned to one of four groups, which rated the items for "true of self" …

Exploring Dialectic Tensions In Teachers' Relationships In School Settings, Griselda Rodriguez

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This study explored the feasibility of using dialectic theory to study of dialectic oppositions in teachers' school-based relationships. Employing relational dialectics as a theoretical framework, this study exposed several sets of dialectical forces emerging in teachers' relationships. 23 high school teachers were interviewed utilizing a semi-structured questionnaire; interviews were transcribed and coded for analysis. The analysis revealed that the dialectic tensions of control vs. emancipation, empowerment vs. oppression are prevalent in teachers' relationships with administrators; the dialectic tensions of solidarity vs. autonomy and fragmentation vs. unity are common in the relationships of teachers with administrators and colleagues as well; while …

An Analysis And Overview Of Selected Original Compositions, Miguel Angel Soto

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The following chapters present an overview of the compositions completed as part of my studies toward the Master of Music degree. They are presented chronologically in the order in which they were composed. The analyses of these works are intended to offer insight into the process of their composition, as well as to draw attention to their important musical elements. These pieces involve a wide range of instrumental and vocal settings, as well as a variety of traditional forms.

Prosecutorial Perseveration: A Reaction To Public Commitment?, Elizabeth Rose Uhl

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The startling number of cases in which prosecutors ignore clear-cut exculpatory evidence and persist in the prosecution of an almost certainly innocent suspect may be related to the public nature of these prosecutors' commitments. Research has shown that people who make a public commitment to a decision are more likely to stick with their decision in the face of contrary evidence than people who did not make a public commitment. This study examined the effects of public commitment on undergraduate mock prosecutors' decisions to prosecute in a fictional murder case. Half of the participants rendered an initial decision which was …

Evaluation Of A Nutrition Program Targeting Child Care Centers, Kendra Witt

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Color Me Healthy (CMH) is an interactive nutrition program designed for preschool aged children in child care settings. The current study examined if CMH increases the consumption of fruit and vegetables. Child care centers were randomly assigned to one of two conditions; children (n=165) in ten centers received CMH and children (n=98) in seven centers acted as controls. Consumption of fruit and vegetable snacks was assessed at baseline, one week post-intervention and 3 months post-intervention. Hierarchical linear modeling determined that group assignment was the only significant predictor of fruit and vegetable consumption. Children who were exposed to the CMH program …

Race-Conscious Student Assignment Plans After Parents Involved: Bringing State Action Principles To Bear On The De Jure/De Facto Distinction, Michael Wells

Scholarly Works

In Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District No. 1, a sharply divided Supreme Court struck down two race-conscious school assignment plans aimed at achieving greater racial integration of the public schools. Taking Parents Involved as a starting point, this Article looks ahead to the future of litigation over student assignment plans. By striking down the Seattle and Louisville plans, the decision may "require hundreds of school districts to rethink race-based policies that they use voluntarily to desegregate schools." At the very least, the 5-4 ruling almost certainly did not put an end to race-conscious integration plans or …

Remixing Obviousness, Joseph S. Miller

Scholarly Works

In April 2007, the Supreme Court, for the first time in 41 years, decided a case about the basic contours of patent law's nonobviousness standard. The case, KSR, upends 25 years of Federal Circuit jurisprudence, and on a legal requirement that every patent must satisfy. In this essay, I show how KSR dismantles two predicates that have long shaped Federal Circuit nonobviousness cases - namely, the intertwined premises that hindsight-driven distortion is the gravest risk to an accurate nonobviousness requirement, and that the person of ordinary skill in the art (from whose perspective nonobviousness is judge) is singularly uncreative. In …

Culture, Sovereignty, And Hollywood: Unesco And The Future Of Trade In Cultural Products, Christopher M. Bruner

Scholarly Works

On October 20, 2005, the General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and CulturalOrganization (UNESCO) adopted a treaty - by a vote of 148-2, with 4 abstentions - that legitimates domestic legal measures aimed at the protection of local producers of cultural activities, goods and services. Opposed by the United States and Israel, the Convention represents a major diplomatic victory for Canada and France - its principal proponents - and a major blow to Hollywood and the United States, audiovisual products being among America's most lucrative exports. Both Canada and France, like many countries around the world, have long …

"I'M Sorry, I Can't Answer That": Supreme Court Confirmations, Judicial Independence, And Positive Legal Scholarship, Lori A. Ringhand

Scholarly Works

The United States Constitution grants to the Senate the duty to provide its “advice and consent” to the appointment of Supreme Court Justices. Just how senators should exercise that duty, however, is deeply contested. Much of the dispute about the Senate's role involves the appropriate scope of questions the senators should ask, and what nominees should be expected to answer, at the confirmation hearing held by the Senate Judiciary Committee. Opponents of vigorous senatorial questioning argue that such questioning infringes on the independence of the judiciary; proponents argue that the nominees' failure to answer probing questions hinders the Senate's constitutional …

Making The Law: Unpublication In The District Courts, Hillel Y. Levin

Scholarly Works

In recent years, one particular area of focus for legal scholars concerned about the increasing privatization and opacity of courts has been the issue of systematic unpublication of judicial opinions by the appellate courts. Judges have issued dueling opinions on the constitutionality of the practice and traded polemics on its appropriateness. Practitioners – whose voices often seem lost (or at least muted) on issues like this – are in the thick of the debate. No longer merely academic, this debate has even spawned a change in the rules of appellate procedure (one that amusingly pulled off the difficult feat of …

Environmental Law, Eleventh Circuit Survey, Travis M. Trimble

Scholarly Works

In 2007 the Eleventh Circuit interpreted the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Rapanos v. United States, regarding the federal government’s jurisdiction over waters under the Clean Water Act (“CWA”), and held that in order for federal jurisdiction to exist over a water that is not navigable in fact, the water must have a “significant nexus” with a water that is navigable in fact. Also under the CWA, the court partially reversed a granting of summary judgment to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, holding that the department had improperly excluded some types of evidence in approving Florida’s 2002 …