Digital Commons Network^™

Insights From Research On Distance Education Learners, Learning, And Learner Support, Richard E. West

Faculty Publications

This article reviews the key ideas related to increasing student learning and support described in selected chapters from the second edition of the Handbook of Distance Education (Moore 2007). These chapters described research findings related to the impact of distance education on learners in general (student autonomy, cognition, social learning, and satisfaction), as well as specific subgroups of distance students and instructors (K-12, female, and disabled students as well as academic advising and library services). This article concludes with brief recommendations for future research in each of these areas.

Polymeric Nanofibrous Media For Enhanced Ground Water Filtration, Bothaina Abdulla Al Shamsi

Theses

Water is one of the bulk transportation media for transmission of particulate contaminants. These contaminants are complex mixtures of particles; most of them are usually smaller than 1000 µm in diameter. Chemical and biological aerosols (particulates) are frequently in the range of 1- 10 µm. The particulate matters may carry some adsorbed gaseous contaminants. The removal of particulate and biological contaminants is thus an important step in water purification process. Particulate contaminants if not removed tend to foul reverse osmosis membranes and severely reduce the throughput of the final purification step. The filtration industry is looking for more efficient high …

Evaluation Of Management Options For Groundwater Resources In Khatt Basin Area, Uae Using Gis And Modflow, Nada Buti Khalifa Buthiana Alsuwaidi

Theses

Khatt springs area has been chosen in 1979 to be a major recreational site in Ras Al Khaimah. The outflow water from these springs has been used to irrigate the surrounding farms. In the period 1999-2004, there was a severe drought which affected the flow and water temperature from the spring as the flow decreased to almost one tenth of its average value and temperature decreased from 40 to 33 C. This work is an attempt to develop a GIS-based groundwater flow model for the Khatt springs area with the following main objectives: 1) Characterize the general hydrogeological setting of …

Impact Of Heavy Metals On Childhood Behaviors And Development: A Uae Study, Said Yousef Ahmad Abdel Razeq

Theses

BACKGROUND: Environmental toxic metal exposure is well known to adversely affect children's development and behavior. To our knowledge, there are no studies that carefully examined this potential hazard in UAE and Gulf countries.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this case-control study was to determine blood concentrations of 12 heavy metals in school-age children in Al Ain City. The other aim was to correlate the blood levels with developmental (e.g., learning disability) and behavioral (e.g., Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder) problems in children.

METHODS: One hundred and forty seven subjects (73 with developmental and/or behavioral disorders and 74 controls) participated in the study. The …

An Investigation Into The Semantics Of English Topological Prepositions, John D. Kelleher, Colm Sloan, Brian Mac Namee

Articles

This paper describes a psycholinguistic experiment that investigates whether the applicability of the topological spatial prepositions "at", "on" or "in" to describe the spatial configuration between two objects is related to the topological relationships between objects being described

Raman Spectroscopy: A Potential Platform For The Rapid Measurement Of Carbon Nanotube-Induced Cytotoxicity, Peter Knief, Colin Clarke, Eva Herzog, Maria Davoren, Fiona Lyng, Aidan Meade, Hugh Byrne

Articles

In this study the suitability of Raman spectroscopy for the determination of carbon nanotube mediated toxicity on human alveolar carcinoma epithelial cells (A549) is explored. The exposure of this cell line represents the primary pathway of exposure in humans, that of inhalation. Peak ratio analysis demonstrates a dose dependent response which correlates to previous toxicological studies. Principal component analysis is employed to further classify cellular response as a function of dose and to examine differences between spectra as a function of exposed concentration. To further illustrate the potential of Raman spectroscopy in this field, Partial Least Squares (PLS) regression and …

Low-Default Portfolio/One-Class Classification: A Literature Review, Kenneth Kennedy, Brian Mac Namee, Sarah Jane Delany

Reports

Consider a bank which wishes to decide whether a credit applicant will obtain credit or not. The bank has to assess if the applicant will be able to redeem the credit. This is done by estimating the probability that the applicant will default prior to the maturity of the credit. To estimate this probability of default it is first necessary to identify criteria which separate the "good" from the "bad" creditors, such as loan amount and age or factors concerning the income of the applicant. The question then arises of how a bank identifies a sufficient number of selective criteria …

Development Of A Novel Humidity Sensor Based On A Polymer Silver Nanoparticle Composite, Aoife Power, John Cassidy, Tony Betts

Conference Papers

Humidity sensing is of particular concern for many industrial applications. Humidity sensors have typically been based on a reversible interaction between a polymer and water vapour. There is work published on gas sensors based on polymer gold nanoparticle composites, where the conductivity of the composite decreases on interaction with the gas. This happens because the swelling of the polymer which increases the electron hopping distance between the gold nanoparticles. The device in this work is a poly vinyl alcohol silver nanoparticle composite cast on an interdigital electrode array. On application of a dc bias, a current develops which is proportional …

Folate-Cyclodextrin Conjugate For Targeted Chemotherapy, Zlata Tofzikovskaya, Orla L. Howe, Mary Mcnamara, Christine O'Connor

Conference Papers

A general disadvantage of chemotherapy is that the drugs cannot discriminate between fast-growing cancer cells and normal healthy cells which causes many side-effects such as hair loss. An ideal solution to current methods of chemotherapy would be the development of a carrier for an anticancer drug which would be able to transport the drug and therefore target only cancer cells and release the drug molecules inside the cells. In this work folic acid (FA) is attached to an aminoalkane derivative of b-cyclodextrin (CDEn) with a view to developing novel drug delivery systems for therapeutic purposes. Cytotoxisity of folate-conjugate (CDEnFA) is …

On The Socles Of Characteristic Subgroups Of Abelian P-Groups, P. V. Danchev, Brendan Goldsmith

Articles

Fully invariant subgroups of an Abelian p-group have been the object of a good deal of study, while characteristic subgroups have received somewhat less attention. Recently the socles of fully invariant subgroups have been studied and this led to the notion of a socle-regular group. The present work replaces the fully invariant subgroups with characteristic ones and leads in a natural way to the notion of a strongly socle-regular group. A surprising relationship, mirroring that between transitive and fully transitive groups, is obtained.

Sampling With Confidence: Using K-Nn Confidence Measures In Active Learning, Rong Hu, Sarah Jane Delany, Brian Macnamee

Conference papers

Active learning is a process through which classifiers can be built from collections of unlabelled examples through the cooperation of a human oracle who can label a small number of examples selected as most informative. Typically the most informative examples are selected through uncertainty sampling based on classification scores. However, previous work has shown that, contrary to expectations, there is not a direct relationship between classification scores and classification confidence. Fortunately, there exists a collection of particularly effective techniques for building measures of classification confidence from the similarity information generated by k-NN classifiers. This paper investigates using these confidence measures …

Widening The Evaluation Net, Brian Mac Namee, Mark Dunne

Conference papers

Intelligent Virtual Agent (IVA) systems are notoriously difficult to evaluate, particularly due to the subjectivity involved. From the various efforts to develop standard evaluation schemes for IVA systems the scheme proposed by Isbister & Doyle, which evaluates systems across five categories, seems particularly appropriate. To examine how these categories are being used, the evaluations presented in the proceedings of IVA '07 and IVA '08 are summarised and the extent to which the five categories in the Isbister & Doyle scheme are used is highlighted. Finally, to illustrate how the full scheme can be used, an evaluation of an IVA system …

Stepping Off The Stage, Brian Mac Namee, John D. Kelleher

Conference papers

Mixed-reality virtual agents are an attractive solution to the problems associated with human-robot interaction, allowing all the expressiveness of virtual characters to be married with the advantages of a physical artifact which exists in a shared environment with the user. However, common approaches to achieving this restrict the virtual characters appearing on top of, or encompassing the robot. This paper describes the Stepping Off the Stage system in which mixed-reality agents are allowed to step off the robot stage and move to other parts of the environment, offering compelling new interaction possibilities.

Gathering Datasets For Activity Identification, Lorcan Coyle, Juan Ye, Susan Mckeever, Stephen Knox, Mathew Staelber, Simon Dobson, Paddy Nixon

Conference papers

The area of activity identification is maturing well in the HCI and ubiquitous computing fields. However, although algorithm development is proceedings well, without publicly available datasets on which to compare results it is difficult to consolidate the disparate work being done. This problem exists because realistic datasets describing human activity are difficult and expensive to gather and because there are significant barriers to releasing the data once gathered. We review positive recent development with the release of two high-quality datasets. From our experiences using these datasets we list some recommendations for the gathering and release of future datasets. Finally, we …

Quantitative Analyses Of Dispersion, Doping And Electronic Separation Of Single Wall Hipco Carbon Nanotubes, Priya Baskar Rao

Doctoral

As prepared SWNTs are obtained in bundles with a mixture of both metallic and semi conducting tubes. For many specific applications, electronically separated single individual tubes are required and in order to reach these application criteria, the tubes should be processed. This thesis reports on a systematic exploration of methods to routinely process, electronically separate and characterise commercially available single walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs). Commercially available HiPco SWNTs were dispersed in water with the assistance of 1 % by weight sodium dodecyl benzene sulphate (SDBS). The tubes were dispersed in the water surfactant system through the aid of sonication and …

Enhanced Absorption Metal Oxides For Photocatalytic Applications, Reenamole Georgekutty

Doctoral

Environmental pollution and industrialization on a global scale has drawn attention to the vital need for developing new hygienic and environmentally friendly purification technologies. The most common indoor and outdoor purification process have their corresponding limitations of electricity and/or other energy sources. To address such enormous tasks, advance oxidation technology like heterogeneous photocatalytic systems via metal oxide semiconductors such as TiO2, ZnO, that are capable to operate effectively and efficiently under UV and visible light must be established. Due to the wide band gap of semiconductors, they are unable to absorb visible light. Hence, numerous research efforts have been done …

The Use Of Raman Spectroscopy In The Characterization Of Single Walled Carbon Nanotubes, Elizabeth Gregan

Doctoral

Carbon nanotubes, long, thin cylinders of carbon are intriguing structures and
have sparked much excitement in recent years. It is clear that understanding the fundamental properties of nanotubes is necessary to get a realisation of the full potential of these materials. Processing and purification on a mass scale will need to be carried out if these materials are to have large scale industrial applications and move beyond the laboratory bench. Highly sensitive, capital intensive equipment such as TEM and AFM, have been used to identify the state and morphology of tube samples as well as their levels of purity, however …

Detecting Dissimilarities In Em Constitutive Parameters Using Differential Imaging Operator On Reconstructed Wavefield, Md. Ishfaqur Raza, Richard E. Dubroff

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Electromagnetic field will scatter when incident on boundaries separating media with different constitutive parameters. This paper demonstrates the use of a differential operator on recorded scattered waves to reveal the shape of the boundary. The method is noninvasive and is composed of three phases. First, the area of interest is illuminated and the resulting scattered electromagnetic fields are recorded. In the 2nd phase, the captured data is numerically reverse simulated in time to reconstruct the field distribution in the region of interest. Finally, the differential imaging operator is applied on the reconstructed wave field, creating an image delineating the boundary …

Multiple Imputation To Correct For Measurement Error In Admixture Estimates In Genetic Structured Association Testing, Miguel A. Padilla, Jamin Divers, Laura K. Vaughan, David B. Allison, Hemant K. Tiwari

Psychology Faculty Publications

Objectives: Structured association tests ( SAT), like any statistical model, assumes that all variables are measured without error. Measurement error can bias parameter estimates and confound residual variance in linear models. It has been shown that admixture estimates can be contaminated with measurement error causing SAT models to suffer from the same afflictions. Multiple imputation (MI) is presented as a viable tool for correcting measurement error problems in SAT linear models with emphasis on correcting measurement error contaminated admixture estimates. Methods: Several MI methods are presented and compared, via simulation, in terms of controlling Type I error rates for both …

Obstacles In Investigating The Role Of Restructuring In Insightful Problem Solving, Ivan K. Ash, Patrick J. Cushen, Jennifer Wiley

Psychology Faculty Publications

In the present article, we articulate three assumptions underlying theories proposing that restructuring processes play a key role in insightful problem solving: representational difficulty, representational change, and discontinuity in solution processes. We argue that these assumptions need empirical validation to justify the proposition of restructuring mechanisms that are unique from those involved in classic information-processing theories of problem solving. To this end, we review some theoretical and methodological obstacles that are inherent in the investigation of the existence and nature of restructuring processes. We then offer some recommendations on how to overcome or avoid these obstacles in future studies. Finally, …

Petromode, Eric H. Christiansen

Faculty Publications

PetroMode is an Excel spreadsheet that can be used to (1) calculate the modal composition of a rock given the elemental composition of the rock and (2) calculate the major element mass balance to test the derivation of a daughter liquid by removal of minerals from a parent liquid (fractional crystallization).

Piezoresistive Feedback Control Of A Mems Thermal Actuator, Robert K. Messenger, Quentin Theodore Aten, Timothy W. Mclain, Larry L. Howell

Faculty Publications

Feedback control of MEMS devices has the potential to significantly improve device performance and reliability. One of the main obstacles to its broader use is the small number of on-chip sensing options available to MEMS designers. A method of using integrated piezoresistive sensing is proposed and demonstrated as another option. Integrated piezoresistive sensing utilizes the inherent piezoresistive property of polycrystalline silicon from which many MEMS devices are fabricated. As compliant MEMS structure’s flex to perform their functions, their resistance changes. That resistance change can be used to transduce the structures’ deflection into an electrical signal. The piezoresistive microdisplacement transducer (PMT) …

Comment On "Generation Of Cold Low Divergent Atomic Beam Of Indium By Laser Ablation", A. Denning, A. Booth, S. Lee, M. Amonson, Scott D. Bergeson

Faculty Publications

We present measurements of the velocity distribution of calcium atoms in an atomic beam generated using a dual-stage laser back-ablation apparatus. Distributions are measured using a velocity selective Doppler time-of-flight technique. They are Boltzmann-like with rms velocities corresponding to temperatures above the melting point for calcium. Contrary to a recent report in the literature, this method does not generate a subthermal atomic beam.

Using Wisconsin Fast Plants To Incorporate Inquiry Into The General Biology Curriculum At Linn-Mar High School, Steven R. Meeker

Graduate Research Papers

This creative component is a culmination of what has been learned throughout the coursework of the Masters of Arts in Science Education Degree at the University of Northern Iowa. The curriculum that has been developed for this project is a series of three learning cycles that allow long-term inquiry labs to be incorporated directly into the existing General Biology curriculum at Linn-Mar High School. The inquiry lab use Wisconsin Fast Plants™ to teach about plant life cycles, ecology and the scientific method. It is expected that the inclusion of these learning cycles will infuse a constructivist framework into the curriculum …

Seeing Shifts: Ecologists' Lived Experiences Of Climate Change In Mountains Of The American West, Kimberly Ford Langmaid

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This study explores the lived experiences of field ecologists who research the effects of global climate change on mountain species and ecosystems in the American West. The purpose is to generate narrative descriptions of ecologists’ experiences in order to communicate about both the scientific ecology and human ecology of climate change. Twenty prominent field ecologists participated in this study. Interviews with ecologists were transcribed and analyzed using a hermeneutic phenomenological methodology. Eight experiential themes emerged through the process of data analysis, and these themes provide the structure for presenting narratives of ecologists’ experiences. The eight themes are: thinking ecologically, the …

Imsa 2009 Profile, Office Of College And Academic Counseling

IMSA Profile

Student Inquiry and Research (SIR) - is an interactive partnership that pairs students with on-campus and off-campus professionals so that they can actively investigate a topic about which they are passionate. The SIR standards focus on planning, investigating, analyzing, and communicating. Requirements include a proposal, investigation journal, active engagement, progress report, draft and final papers, presentation at IMSAIoquium, and final summaries and evaluation.

[Introduction To] The Hardy Space Of A Slit Domain, William T. Ross, Alexandra Aleman, Nathan S. Feldman

Bookshelf

If H is a Hilbert space and T : H ? H is a continous linear operator, a natural question to ask is: What are the closed subspaces M of H for which T M ? M? Of course the famous invariant subspace problem asks whether or not T has any non-trivial invariant subspaces. This monograph is part of a long line of study of the invariant subspaces of the operator T = M (multiplication by the independent variable z, i. e. , M f = zf ) on a z z Hilbert space of analytic functions on a bounded …

Forked:A Demonstration Of Physics Realism In Augmented Reality, David Beaney, Brian Mac Namee

Conference papers

In making fully immersive augmented reality (AR) applications, real and virtual objects will have to be seen to physically interact together in a realistic and believable way. This paper describes Forked! a system that has been developed to show how physical interactions between real and virtual objects can be simulated re- alistically and believably through appropriate use of a physics en- gine. The system allows users control a robotic forklift to manipu- late virtual crates in an AR environment. The paper also describes a evaluation experiment in which it is shown that the physical inter- actions between the forklift and …

Toward Social Search: From Explicit To Implicit Collaboration To Predict Users' Interests, Luca Longo, Stephen Barrett

Conference papers

Inspection methods and cheap self-reporting procedures have been significantly employed in the field of Human- Computer Interaction for assessing the usability of interfaces, systems and technologies. However, there is a tendency to overlook aspects related to the context and features of the users during the usability assessment process. This research introduces the concept of mental workload as an aid to enhance usability measurement. A user-study has been designed and executed in the context of human-web interaction. The aim was to investigate the relationship between the perception of usability of three popular web-sites, and the mental workload imposed by a set …

Sustainability Through Community Planning: A Substantive Level Approach, Toni Soji Ola

Plymouth Business School Theses

This study identified ways of translating sustainability and sustainable development aims and objectives into practical means in a local government setting, through action research, thereby contributing to the global sustainability debate. This is in an attempt to fill the gap identified in literature, which relates to the paucity of research on translating sustainability into practical means. In achieving one of its aims, the study proposed three levels of abstraction in the form of globalisation theory, sustainability theory and applied sustainable development, conceptualised as grand theory, meso theory and substantive theory. The linkage between these theories was established, thereby contributing and …