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2008

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The Treatment Of Minorities And Women By Southwestern Courts And Prisons, Donna Crail-Rugotzke Jan 2008

The Treatment Of Minorities And Women By Southwestern Courts And Prisons, Donna Crail-Rugotzke

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this work is to examine the role of race, ethnicity, and gender in the treatment of Native American, women, and Latino defendants and inmates by Southwestern courts and prisons from 1890 to 1930. This dissertation addresses issues such as the types of trials Native Americans, women and Latinos received from Arizona, Nevada, and New Mexico courts and what types of sentences they received. This study explores whether late nineteenth and early twentieth-century attitudes about gender, race, and ethnicity influenced the sentencing of prisoners; It also describes the conditions at the Nevada State Prison, New Mexico Territorial Penitentiary, …

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The Effects Of Students' Asynchronous Online Discussions Of Conceptual Errors On Intentionally Flawed Teacher-Constructed Concept Maps, Magdalena Sas Jan 2008

The Effects Of Students' Asynchronous Online Discussions Of Conceptual Errors On Intentionally Flawed Teacher-Constructed Concept Maps, Magdalena Sas

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Research shows that online discussions are often unfocused and without providing much benefit to students' learning outcomes. One of the reasons behind this phenomenon is the lack of or inadequate scaffolding or guidance provided to students when participating on asynchronous discussion boards. The collaborative misconception mapping strategy is a tool that was designed to mediate cognitive and metacognitive processes via feedback provided by peers and a teacher-created concept map that contains intentional conceptual errors; This study evaluated the effects of collaborative misconception mapping as compared with those of a traditional online discussion activity, where students post responses to discussion questions. …

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Reactor Physics Studies For The Advanced Fuel Cycle Initiative (Afci) Reactor -Accelerator Coupling Experiments (Race) Project, Evgeny Yuryevich Stankovskiy Jan 2008

Reactor Physics Studies For The Advanced Fuel Cycle Initiative (Afci) Reactor -Accelerator Coupling Experiments (Race) Project, Evgeny Yuryevich Stankovskiy

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

In the recently completed RACE Project of the AFCI, accelerator-driven subcritical systems (ADS) experiments were conducted to develop technology of coupling accelerators to nuclear reactors. In these experiments electron accelerators induced photon-neutron reactions in heavy-metal targets to initiate fission reactions in ADS. Although the Idaho State University (ISU) RACE ADS was constructed only to develop measurement techniques for advanced experiments, many reactor kinetics experiments were conducted there. In the research reported in this dissertation, a method was developed to calculate kinetics parameters for measurement and calculation of the reactivity of ADS, a safety parameter that is necessary for control and …

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A Middle School Treasury And An Okinawan Triptych, Tracy Ann Leslie Jan 2008

A Middle School Treasury And An Okinawan Triptych, Tracy Ann Leslie

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

In the quest to expand the repertoire for the middle school band medium, arrangements of high musical value are always in demand. The focus of this document will be the expansion of middle school repertoire by arranging three Japanese folk songs from the island of Okinawa for middle school band: Tinsagunu hana, Jin jin and Endono hana and developing a warm up method for beginning, intermediate and advanced middle school bands. Included will be a complementary presentation of the Okinawan folk songs along with detailed descriptions of the way these folk songs were adapted for middle level students. Problems associated …

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The Impact Of Interactive Factors On Romanian Students' Understanding Of Place Value, Madalina Tanase Jan 2008

The Impact Of Interactive Factors On Romanian Students' Understanding Of Place Value, Madalina Tanase

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Students' mathematics achievement is believed to be influenced by a variety of factors (Brenner, Master of Engineering (ME), Herman S., Ho, H.Z. & Zimmer, J.M., 1999; Cai, C. 2000; Huntsinger, C. & J., P.E., 2000; Ma, 1999; Miura, 1987; Stevenson, L. & Stigler, J.W. 1986). As such, the performance gap in mathematics between students from different countries was attributed in turn, to the teachers' subject matter and pedagogical knowledge (Ma, 1999, Perry, 2000), curriculum development (Li, 2000; Valverde, Bianchi, Wolfe, Schmidt, Houang, 2002), native language (Miura, 1987), as well as parental raising and teaching strategies (Dornbush, Ritter, Leiderman, Roberts, & …

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Elite Public Business Schools & Social Responsibility: A Search For Exemplars, Kimberly E Stott Jan 2008

Elite Public Business Schools & Social Responsibility: A Search For Exemplars, Kimberly E Stott

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Cries for change have been heard by the nation's colleges and universities and their business schools, and reform is underway. Yet many continue to challenge the academy's readiness to meet modern challenges. How responsive are America's business schools to changing social needs? What lessons can they learn from the broader academic community of which they are apart? To answer these questions, we looked at the growing body of literature in these areas and queried six of this country's premiere public business schools directly. We found evidence to suggest that this nation's business schools are engaging with society and are doing …

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Impacts Of An Invasive Shrub, Buddleja Davidii (Butterfly Bush), On Plant Succession On New Zealand Floodplains, Nita Gay Tallent-Halsell Jan 2008

Impacts Of An Invasive Shrub, Buddleja Davidii (Butterfly Bush), On Plant Succession On New Zealand Floodplains, Nita Gay Tallent-Halsell

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Plant successional trajectories are driven in part by the interactions among the biotic and abiotic components of a plant community such that introduction of an invasive species may impact the recruitment of native species. Buddleja davidii Franchet (Family Buddlejaceae) is an ornamental shrub, native to China, able to rapidly colonize and dominate disturbed areas around the world. This study details the impact B. davidii has on several New Zealand floodplain communities and the recruitment, growth and survival of a native species, Griselinia littoralis, in natural settings and under controlled conditions in plots and treatments representative of a multi-stage (i.e., open, …

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Writing Cinema: Film In The Novel From Wilson To Coover, Gregory Robinson Jan 2008

Writing Cinema: Film In The Novel From Wilson To Coover, Gregory Robinson

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Film and fiction are the sister arts of the twentieth century. Like any family, their relationship has not always been a tranquil one, but no other combination of arts over the last century has inspired the amount of debate and dialogue that they have, both in and out of academia. Beginning with George Bluestone's seminal Novels into Film (1957), academic involvement with film and fiction have primarily used two modes of comparative studies: adaptation and stylistics. The first compares a novel to its cinematic adaptation and the second compares a particular literary form with a cinematic technique. Although both approaches …

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Financial Aid And Completion Rates At Diverse Public, Four-Year, Higher Education Institutions, Sandra Gayle Nadelson Jan 2008

Financial Aid And Completion Rates At Diverse Public, Four-Year, Higher Education Institutions, Sandra Gayle Nadelson

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

The main purpose of student financial aid is to improve student success. Success can be defined as improving students' access to higher education, increasing institutional choices, and increasing graduation rates (Davis, 2001). Research has focused on financial aid and student success. Financial aid has been associated with improving access for low income and minority students (Heller, 2005). However, research has not proven that all types of financial aid are effective in increasing choice and the graduation rates of these groups of students (Kerkvliet & Nowell, 2005; Kim, 2004); Thus, the purpose of this study was to determine if financial aid …

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Enhanced Detection Of Induced Fluorescence From Residual Radioactive Materials, Craig-Alan Crawford Bias Jan 2008

Enhanced Detection Of Induced Fluorescence From Residual Radioactive Materials, Craig-Alan Crawford Bias

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Radiation detection is often is hampered by signal losses and noise. Conversion of decay particle energy to photons by scintillation, or induction of emissions from fluorescent materials by laser excitation, offers improved signal-to-noise ratios and the possibility of remote detection. This dissertation investigates the enhancement of induced fluorescence afforded by the application of scintillator-loaded polymer films to a radioactive material and of silanol ligand solutions to a fluorescent material; Prompt ultraviolet fluorescence from barium fluoride (BaF2)-loaded polymer films was induced by exposure to a 99Tc source and measured by scintillation counting. Scintillation photons suffer less attenuation in media than do …

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Country Lawyer In A Maverick Boom Town: The Legal Career Of Harry Claiborne, J. Bruce Alverson Jan 2008

Country Lawyer In A Maverick Boom Town: The Legal Career Of Harry Claiborne, J. Bruce Alverson

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

The anticipated title of my doctoral dissertation in history is "Country Lawyer in a Maverick Boom Town: The Legal Career of Harry Claiborne." Spanning nearly sixty years, Claiborne's legal career reflected both the spirit of a young Las Vegas as well as the no-holds-barred attitude of frontier lawyers. Moving to Las Vegas initially in 1943 while in the military, he began practicing law in 1947. Claiborne participated in the evolution of the legal community during the mid-century growth period of southern Nevada. Possibly the most active trial lawyer in the state, his first jury trial was in 1947 and his …

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Examination Of Clinical And Legal Issues Relevant To Child Maltreatment Reporting, Alisha Marie Carpenter Jan 2008

Examination Of Clinical And Legal Issues Relevant To Child Maltreatment Reporting, Alisha Marie Carpenter

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Mental health professionals have evidenced deficiencies in reporting child maltreatment, including knowledge about mandatory reporting laws, ability to accurately identify child maltreatment, child maltreatment reporting intentions, and clinical expertise in reporting child maltreatment (e.g., utilization of best practices in the management of clients throughout the reporting process). Therefore, the purposes of the given study were to develop and initially validate three inventories (i.e., Knowledge of Child Maltreatment Laws Screening Tool, Recognition of Child Maltreatment Screening Tool, and Clinical Expertise in Reporting Child Maltreatment Screening Tool) to assess reporting competence in mental health professionals and graduate students. Multistage validation supports the …

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An Analysis Of The Differential Power Of The Fake Bad Scale Of The Mmpi-2, Nicole Ann Cavenagh Jan 2008

An Analysis Of The Differential Power Of The Fake Bad Scale Of The Mmpi-2, Nicole Ann Cavenagh

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

This study examined the ability of the Fake Bad Scale of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 to differentiate among individuals who have a traumatic brain injury, individuals with a somatoform disorder, and individuals who are malingering. Participants were chosen from a pool of 283 personal injury and workers compensation cases obtained from an established neuropsychological practice in a major Southwestern city. Each of these participants was involved in litigation and received a diagnosis that included traumatic brain injury, a somatoform disorder, or malingering. Complete neuropsychological and psychological test batteries were conducted on each participant, and the complete medical records for …

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The Impact Of Promotion On Inventory Forecasting For An Asian Wholesale Corporation, Tzu-Chu Chien Jan 2008

The Impact Of Promotion On Inventory Forecasting For An Asian Wholesale Corporation, Tzu-Chu Chien

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Inventory control has been a challenge to wholesale firms since inventory can be easily affected by numerous operational, social, cultural, and environmental factors. Besides, marketing related factors create uncertainty as to the levels of the product demands, and that uncertainty makes inventory forecasting much more difficult and forces wholesalers to estimate the impacts of the potentially influential factors. Hence, an understanding of the factors affecting inventory levels is the primary goal of this study; Utilizing historical inventory data and other marketing related information provided by an Asian wholesale corporation, the researcher estimated the effect of promotion on product sales and …

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The Neurocognitive Impairment Associated With Comorbid Schizophrenia And Ptsd, Lisa Duke Jan 2008

The Neurocognitive Impairment Associated With Comorbid Schizophrenia And Ptsd, Lisa Duke

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Individuals with severe mental illness report a higher incidence of trauma and PTSD than the general population. A trauma history in individuals with schizophrenia has been associated with more severe psychiatric symptoms including positive symptoms, depression, suicidality, anxiety, somatization and dissociation (Beck & van der Kolk, 1987; Craine, Henson, Colliver & MacLean, 1988; Ross, Anderson & Clark, 1994; Darves-Bornoz, & Gaillard, 1995; Holowka, King, Saheb, Pukall & Brunett, 2003; Strauss et al., 2006); The current study is among the first to examine the influence of comorbid schizophrenia and PTSD by performing comprehensive diagnostic, symptom and neurocognitive evaluations on four groups: …

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The Nature Of Epistemic Climates In Elementary Classrooms, Florian C Feucht Jan 2008

The Nature Of Epistemic Climates In Elementary Classrooms, Florian C Feucht

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

This study explored the nature of three epistemic climates in a fourth-grade classroom (i.e., a science and a reading lesson) and a sixth-grade classroom (i.e., a reading lesson). An epistemic climate is defined as the nature of knowledge and knowing emerging from the personal epistemologies of: (1) students, and (2) teachers, as well as from the epistemological underpinnings of (3) knowledge representations (e.g., curricula and textbooks), (4) instruction, and (5) their reciprocal relations. An epistemic climate is unique to individual classrooms and subject to change. A variety of qualitative methods were applied to tap the five data points of each …

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The Effects Of Trauma Experiences In Maltreated Adolescents With Respect To Familial And Cultural Variables, Amie Marie Lemos-Miller Jan 2008

The Effects Of Trauma Experiences In Maltreated Adolescents With Respect To Familial And Cultural Variables, Amie Marie Lemos-Miller

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Child maltreatment is a societal problem that affects thousands of youths in the United States. Substantial amounts of youths affected by child maltreatment develop Posttraumatic Disorder (PTSD) symptoms. Depression, maladaptive cognitions, dissociation, and anger are symptoms often associated with presentations of PTSD. Specifically, these PTSD-related symptoms may influence development and maintenance of PTSD. This study examined PTSD-related symptoms and PTSD associated with child maltreatment within a culturally competent, ecologically-based framework; The first hypothesis was that family expressiveness, cohesion, control, conflict, and independence would mediate the relationship between (1) PTSD-related symptoms of depression, dissociation, maladaptive cognitions, and anger and (2) PTSD …

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The Conceptualization And Development Of Specifications For A Doctoral Program In Security Studies: A Delphi Study, Barent Nelson Mccool Jan 2008

The Conceptualization And Development Of Specifications For A Doctoral Program In Security Studies: A Delphi Study, Barent Nelson Mccool

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

In 1994 there were only four formal "Emergency Management/Security" college degree programs being offered in academic America, of which only one was offered at the baccalaureate level, the others being certificate programs (Federal Emergency Management Agency, 2007). This study focused on the following research questions. (1) Is there a current need for a doctoral program in security studies? (2) If so, how should such a program be structured academically? (3) If so, should such a program be offered as a PhD, EdD or an Executive Doctoral degree program?;A review of the literature indicated that a gap exists between current programs …

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Positive Emotion Processing Deficits In Schizophrenia, Gregory P Strauss Jan 2008

Positive Emotion Processing Deficits In Schizophrenia, Gregory P Strauss

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Affective impairments were examined in patients with and without deficit syndrome schizophrenia. A battery of tests designed to measure emotional experience, emotional information processing, and emotional perception were administered to deficit (n = 15) and non-deficit syndrome (n = 26) schizophrenia patients classified according to the Schedule for the Deficit Syndrome, and matched non-patient control subjects (n = 22). As predicted, in comparison to non-deficit patients and controls, deficit syndrome patients reported less frequent and intense experience of positive emotion, recalled significantly fewer positive words, and displayed an impaired ability to accurately identify and judge the valence of pleasant odors. …

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The Treatment Of Selective Mutism: A Case Control Alternating Treatments Design, Jennifer L Vecchio Jan 2008

The Treatment Of Selective Mutism: A Case Control Alternating Treatments Design, Jennifer L Vecchio

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

This was the first study to examine the differential effectiveness of two behavioral interventions for selective mutism while employing a single-case alternating treatments design with documentation of treatment outcomes, calculation of effect size, and measures of treatment integrity. Participants were recruited via press release to the local media and the Clark County School District. Interested participants were initially screened over the telephone. If the screening indicated that a child met diagnostic criteria for selective mutism and did not meet exclusionary criteria, an assessment was scheduled. Each participant was assessed by the Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule for Children for DSM-IV Child …

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Effects Of Metallurgical And Environmental Variables On The Performance Of Alloy 718 For Heat Exchanger Applications, Anand Venkatesh Jan 2008

Effects Of Metallurgical And Environmental Variables On The Performance Of Alloy 718 For Heat Exchanger Applications, Anand Venkatesh

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Austenitic Alloy 718 was extensively investigated, evaluating its tensile properties, crack-growth-rate (CGR), impact resistance, and resistance to stress-corrosion-cracking (SCC) and localized corrosion. The tensile data enabled a development of mechanisms on dynamic strain aging (DSA) and yield strength anomaly (YSA). The magnitudes of dislocation density, activation energy and work-hardening index, related to the DSA phenomenon, were estimated using different analytical approaches. The occurrence of YSA was verified based on transmission electron microscopic evaluations. The steady state CGR followed the Paris equation, showing a linear relationship. Alloy 718 exhibited a respectable impact resistance irrespective of the testing temperature. The SCC susceptibility …

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Spatiotemporal Variation In Soil Moisture And Hydraulic Properties And Their Impacts On Rainfall -Runoff And Infiltration Processes, Jun Yin Jan 2008

Spatiotemporal Variation In Soil Moisture And Hydraulic Properties And Their Impacts On Rainfall -Runoff And Infiltration Processes, Jun Yin

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

In arid and semi-arid regions such as in the southwestern United States, soil moisture is an essential component of desert ecosystems. Gaining better knowledge of moisture dynamics through appropriate numerical modeling will help us understand physical mechanisms that influence soil hydrologic processes in these regions. Moreover, numerical modeling of these processes is often emphasized because most desert watersheds are ungauged, and thus field observations are either not readily available or difficult to simulate. In this dissertation, three modeling studies were conducted to investigate the temporal and spatial soil moisture variation and hydraulic properties, and their effect on rainfall-runoff and infiltration …

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Lodging Capacity Optimization: Application Of An Inventory Model To China's Lodging Industry, Tianshu Zheng Jan 2008

Lodging Capacity Optimization: Application Of An Inventory Model To China's Lodging Industry, Tianshu Zheng

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Since China decided to promote tourism in 1978, the rapidly increasing number of foreign visitors has continuously put pressure on China's tourism infrastructure and service facilities. To keep up with the demand, China's hotel industry has been expanding at a growth rate that is faster than that of foreign visitors. In 1990s, the overdevelopment became a problem confronting the China's hotel industry. However, the hotel supply has continuously been increasing beyond the demand. Severe over-capacity is likely to occur in China's hotel industry time series analysis and single-period inventory model, this dissertation estimates the optimal capacity for both China's and …

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Statistical Modeling Of Skewed Data Using Newly Formed Parametric Distributions, Kahadawala Cooray Jan 2008

Statistical Modeling Of Skewed Data Using Newly Formed Parametric Distributions, Kahadawala Cooray

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Several newly formed continuous parametric distributions are introduced to analyze skewed data. Firstly, a two-parameter smooth continuous lognormal-Pareto composite distribution is introduced for modeling highly positively skewed data. The new density is a lognormal density up to an unknown threshold value and a Pareto density for the remainder. The resulting density is similar in shape to the lognormal density, yet its upper tail is larger than the lognormal density and the tail behavior is quite similar to the Pareto density. Parameter estimation methods and the goodness-of-fit criterion for the new distribution are presented. A large actuarial data set is analyzed …

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Communicating The Meanings Of Cultural Artifacts: An Exploratory Study Of Orientation Units, Ryan David Theroux Jan 2008

Communicating The Meanings Of Cultural Artifacts: An Exploratory Study Of Orientation Units, Ryan David Theroux

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

Understanding the meanings of cultural artifacts on college campuses can provide new students with a way of learning an institution's culture and values. To help communicate the meanings of cultural artifacts, new student orientation is a common activity that provides institutions, particularly orientation units, with an opportunity to acculturate first-year students into a collegiate environment. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore how orientation directors and orientation leaders perceive their roles in communicating the meanings of cultural artifacts to first-year students at four public universities in California. In-depth and focus groups interviews were conducted with participants over the …

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Preparing Special Educators: Infusing Multicultural Educational Practices And Lesson Planning In Pre-Student Teaching Fieldwork, Tyi-Sanna Jones Jan 2008

Preparing Special Educators: Infusing Multicultural Educational Practices And Lesson Planning In Pre-Student Teaching Fieldwork, Tyi-Sanna Jones

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

This study was designed to explore a model of teaching multicultural principles in special education pre-student teaching fieldwork. The ultimate goal was to ascertain the impact of model components on student knowledge, attitudes, and lesson plan design. Data were collected for 13 weeks during the special education pre-student teaching seminar. The data collection instruments were the Multicultural/Diversity Content Test (Ambrosio, 2000), the Multicultural/Diversity Scale-Revised (Ambrosio, 1998), and the Lesson Plan Assessment (Ambrosio, Hogan, & Miller, 1999). The Special Education pre-student teachers participated in 13 multicultural/diversity lectures/lessons as well as 25% of the participants were observed in their pre-student teaching fieldwork; …

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Exploring Preschoolers' Personal Epistemologies Using Focus Groups, Denise Lynne Winsor Jan 2008

Exploring Preschoolers' Personal Epistemologies Using Focus Groups, Denise Lynne Winsor

UNLV Retrospective Theses & Dissertations

This is a qualitative study designed to use focus groups as a means of identifying the personal epistemologies of preschool children in an authentic learning environment. Personal epistemology is generally defined as the theory about the nature of knowledge and the process of knowing. Investigations of young children are scarce in this field, and little is known about the early onset of epistemological development. However, recent research suggests a possible connection between epistemic development and theory of mind; This study explores very young children and how their cognitive ability and interactions with peers may reveal information regarding epistemological development. The …

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Design, Construction, And Optimization Of A High-Throughput System To Measure The Activity Of Tio₂ Nanotubes During Gas Phase Photocatalytic Oxidation Of Organics, Jordan A. Grasser Jan 2008

Design, Construction, And Optimization Of A High-Throughput System To Measure The Activity Of Tio₂ Nanotubes During Gas Phase Photocatalytic Oxidation Of Organics, Jordan A. Grasser

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

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Experimental Evaluation Of The Effect Of Minimum Quantity Lubrication In Turning Aisi-4140 Steel, Kalyan Reddy Endapally Jan 2008

Experimental Evaluation Of The Effect Of Minimum Quantity Lubrication In Turning Aisi-4140 Steel, Kalyan Reddy Endapally

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

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Integrating Technology In Teaching Business And Technical Writing At The University Of North Dakota, Scarlet Gray Bernard Jan 2008

Integrating Technology In Teaching Business And Technical Writing At The University Of North Dakota, Scarlet Gray Bernard

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

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