Digital Commons Network^™

Essays On The Integration Of Anisotropic Landscapes Within Contemporary Geographic Profiling Models, Joshua D. Kent

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

A criminal geographic profile is a tool used by law enforcement professionals for estimating the probable location of a serial offender’s anchor point, or domicile. This estimate is constructed according to the distribution of linked crime scenes. While this approach can utilize a number of different modeling techniques, most fail to account for the inherent irregularities of the physical and cultural landscape. Contemporary methodologies have consistently adopted the a priori assumption that an offender’s crime scenes and anchor point are located across an isotropic surface on which the opportunity to offend is equally distributed around the offender’s residence. Simple introspection …

Synthesis Of Pyrrolo[2,3-D]Pytimidines And Pytimido[4,5-B]Indoles As Inhibitors Of Multiple Receptor Tyrosine Kinases, Folate Metabolizing Enzymes And Tubulin, Nilesh Zaware

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation deals with the synthesis of substituted pyrrolo[2,3-d]pyrimidines and pyrimido[4,5-b]indoles as potential antitumor agents. The approaches to target tumor cells include inhibition of tumor induced angiogenesis via multiple receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) inhibition (or) inhibition of the folate metabolizing enzymes - dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) or thymidylate synthase (TS) (or) inhibition of tubulin.

Behavioral Couple Therapy: Partner-Involved Treatment For Substance-Abusing Women, William Fals-Stewart, Wendy K.K. Lam, Michelle L. Kelley

Psychology Faculty Publications

Among the various psychosocial interventions presently available to treat alcohol and drug abuse, it could be argued that partner-involved treatments are the most broadly efficacious. There is not only substantial empirical support for the use of couple-based treatments in terms of improvements in primary targeted outcomes, such as substance use and relationship adjustment, but also in other areas that are of clear public health significance, including intimate partner violence (IPV), children's adjustment, and cost-benefit ratio and cost-effectiveness. During the last few decades, programmatic research on the application of partner-involved therapies for substance abuse has been among the most active and …

Assessment And Care Of Adults At Risk For Suicidal Ideation And Behaviour, Registered Nurses' Association Of Ontario

General Submissions: Community and Population-based Materials

This best practice guideline aims to assist nurses working in diverse practice settings provide evidence-based care to adults at risk for suicidal ideation and behaviours. Within the scope of this guideline, adults at risk may include any adult who may exhibit risk factors, with or without expressed suicidal intent.

Ostomy Care & Management, Registered Nurses' Association Of Ontario

General Submissions: Community and Population-based Materials

This guideline provides evidence-based recommendations for Registered Nurses and Registered Practical Nurses related to the assessment and management of people with colostomies, ileostomies and urostomies, including the assessment and management of the peristomal skin. This guideline will focus on three areas of care: pre-operative, post-operative, and follow-up. All individuals with ostomies, across the continuum of care, including the needs of the family and caregiver, will be addressed.

Supporting Clients On Methadone Maintenance Treatment, Registered Nurses' Association Of Ontario

General Submissions: Community and Population-based Materials

This guideline will focus on recommendations for any youth, adult or older adult either already on MMT or those who are potential candidates for MMT. Particular attention will be paid to priority populations (for whom there are particular physiological implications of MMT).

Best Practice Guideline For The Subcutaneous Administration Of Insulin In Adults With Type 2 Diabetes, Registered Nurses' Association Of Ontario

General Submissions: Community and Population-based Materials

The focus of this guideline is to support nurses, Registered Nurses (RNs) and Registered Practical Nurses (RPNs) in all practice settings, as they care for clients (18 years and older) with type 2 diabetes requiring subcutaneous insulin therapy. Specifically, this guideline would assist nurses who are not specialists in diabetes care to safely initiate and administer insulin, a "high-alert" medication. This guideline will provide answers to the question: What are the essential client self-care components to be addressed by nurses when caring for an adult with type 2 diabetes who requires subcutaneous insulin?

Decision Support For Adults Living With Chronic Kidney Disease, Registered Nurses' Association Of Ontario

General Submissions: Community and Population-based Materials

The purpose of this best practice guideline is:

• To help nurses recognize patients with CKD experiencing decisional conflict related to situations in which there is more than one option available for managing their condition.
• To help nurses support patient involvement in reaching quality health decisions. Quality decisions are made using the best available evidence about the options and are consistent with the patients' values.

Molecular, Statistical And Genetic Analyses Of Complex Agronomic Traits In Rice, Samuel Agbayani Ordonez Jr.

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Novel molecular and statistical approaches are needed for identification of DNA markers associated with complex traits in rice. The first research objective was to evaluate mixed-model and multiple regression approaches for their ability to identify molecular markers associated with complex traits in rice. A combined mixed model and multiple regression approach was optimal for selecting the smallest number of DNA markers associated with relatively high R2 values and for consistency with previous mapping studies. Support Vector Regression (SVR) was evaluated in the second research objective for the ability to generate high levels of accuracy and power for markers associated with …

Alchoholism And Intimate Partner Violence: Effects On Children's Psychosocial Adjustment, Keith Klostermann, Michelle L. Kelley

Psychology Faculty Publications

It is widely recognized that alcoholism and relationship violence often have serious consequences for adults; however, children living with alcoholic parents are susceptible to the deleterious familial environments these caregivers frequently create. Given the prevalence of IPV among patients entering substance abuse treatment, coupled with the negative familial consequences associated with these types of behavior, this review explores what have been, to this point, two divergent lines of research: (a) the effects of parental alcoholism on children, and (b) the effects of children's exposure to intimate partner violence. In this article, the interrelationship between alcoholism and IPV is examined, with …

A Critical Examination Into Motivation And Gender In Youth Physical Fitness Testing, Elizabeth A. Domangue

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Fitness testing in physical education classes has emerged as an important component in efforts to assess and address health concerns related to children’s physical inactivity. To date, motivational aspects of fitness testing, especially in regard to students’ future intention to participate in fitness-related activities, have not been closely examined. Fitness testing practices have been identified as a dominant discourse in physical education that continue to separate girls’ and boys’ physicalities along gendered lines. This lack of understanding about the motivational implications of fitness testing programs, coupled with concerns related to the gendered nature of fitness testing, emphasize the significance of …

The Occurrence Of Maltreatment And Depression Among Adjudicated Adolescent Sexual Offenders With High Functioning Autism Or Asperger's Disorder, Jessica Bleil Walters

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The following study examined the presence and severity of abuse and/or neglect and the occurrence of depressive symptomatology among adolescents with High Functioning Autism (HFA) or Asperger's Disorder (AD) compared to adolescents without HFA/AD who are adjudicated delinquent due to sexual offense and attend a State Residential Sexual Offender Program. The scores of 23 adolescent sexual offenders diagnosed with either HFA or AD were compared to 15 non-HFA/AD adolescent sexual offenders on the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ) as well as the Beck Depression Inventory - Second Edition (BDI-II). An investigation of whether there is a relationship between the severity of …

Public Memory: How Vietnam Veterans Are Using Technology To Make Private Memory Public, Dennis Woytek

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The narrative relationship of a group of Americans who served in the Vietnam War is the focus of this dissertation. This group is unique to veteran groups that have returned from serving their country in a time of war or conflict. My research is based on the rhetorical writings of recognized scholars, a knowledge base grounded in the historical tradition of rhetoric. Research is also included from interviews and correspondence with many Vietnam veterans, the writings of novelists and archive material provided by the Department of Defense, the United States Navy, and American Forces Radio and Television. This dissertation addresses …

Do Benchmark Assessments Increase Student Achievement On State Standardized Tests?, Patrick Hefflin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Since 4Sight Benchmark Assessments are being promoted by politicians and educational departments throughout many states, this study was needed to determine the correlation between students' scaled scores on 4Sight and state standardized tests (PSSA). This study also uncovered teachers' perceptions of 4Sight and the extent that they used 4Sight data to modify classroom instruction.

In summary this research discovered a strong correlation between 4Sight and the PSSAs. There were significant statistical results that supported a connection between the scaled scores on 4Sight Benchmark Assessments and student scaled scores on the PSSA for this rural school district. Even though the results …

Imag(In)Ing Neuro-Psychology: A Multi-Perspectival, Critical, Autoethnographic Study, Kristen Hennessy

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Neuropsychology in the United States initially strove to diagnose brain damage. Recently, this diagnostic task has been largely usurped by the emergence of neuroimaging. Despite the encroachment upon the traditional territory of neuropsychology, neuropsychology has continued relatively unchanged. Personally encountering neuropsychology from the multiple positions of patient, family member, and training professional, I wondered about the forces operating that prevented neuropsychology from evolving. I speculated that unseen forces operated to keep neuropsychology stagnant and that the neuropsychologist's function was largely unarticulated. I further speculated that the hidden functions involved very particular (problematic) relationships. This dissertation aims to begin to highlight …

The Effects Of Being Placed In Special Education Classes Versus General Education Classes And Teacher Certification On Students' High-Stakes Testing Scores, Bethany Ann Porter

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The introduction of new laws such as the amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 1997) and the No Child Left Behind Act have changed education for special education students in the United States. Students with disabilities are now more frequently being held to the same standards as those students without disabilities. These federal laws are designed to help close the achievement gap among all students regardless of race, gender, poverty, or disability status. Special education students are now required to participate in statewide high-stakes testing programs alongside their nondisabled peers. Another movement involves including students with disabilities …

A Unity Of Contraries: Dorothy Day And The 'No-Alibi' Rhetoric Of Defiance And Devotion, Catherine Carr Fitzwilliams

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This offering considers what I term the embedded narrative of Dorothy Day (1897-1980) as a Rhetoric of Defiance and Devotion and it is illustrated by selected metaphors associated with Martin Buber and M. M. Bakhtin. Concepts of conscience, community and the complexities associated with being authentically human are engaged within an interpretive journey of a life lived in response to the flashpoints of the last century.

Enlisting hermeneutics as a guide, Day's petite narrative is situated against a broader narrative of eight decades of economic, social, political, cultural and (for her) philosophical and spiritual changes. Her various and varying labels …

Determinants Of The Probability Of Ship Injuries, Wayne K. Talley

Economics Faculty Publications

This study investigates determinants of the probability that an individual onboard a ship of a given shipping line will be injured (given that the ship is not involved in an accident). A Probit regression statistical model is used to investigate such determinants when ships are in port and on given types of containerships. Probit estimation results suggest that an individual is less likely to be injured in port onboard a ship that is larger in size and underway, but more likely to be injured if involved in a fall. An individual is less likely to be injured onboard a containership …

Under Construction: Recollecting The Museum Of The Moving Image, Andr&Eacutee Elise Comiskey Betancourt

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

On February 27, 2008 the Museum of the Moving Image launched its $65 million renovation and expansion with a digital groundbreaking. Since opening its doors in Astoria, New York in 1988, the museum, originally devoted to film and television, has embraced digital media. From its “Hollywood East” Astoria Studio historic landmark site to its popular website, the Museum of the Moving Image provides a unique setting for studying the museumification of moving image culture, particularly the production and consumption of moving images. In response to the Museum of the Moving Image’s domestication of moving image culture in its core exhibition, …

Drum Taps: A Performance Guide To The Song Cycle By Richard Pearson Thomas, William Clay Smith

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Smith, William Clay, B.A., Campbellsville University, 2000 Master of Arts in Music, Campbellsville University, 2001 Doctor of Musical Arts, Fall Commencement, 2009 Major: Music Drum Taps: A Performance Guide to the Song Cycle by Richard Pearson Thomas Written Document directed by Kirkpatrick Professor of Voice Robert Grayson Pages in written document, 147. Words in abstract, 120. ABSTRACT Composer Richard Pearson Thomas has gained recognition from his art song “I Never Saw a Moor” and his participation in the AIDS Quilt Songbook, but his song cycle Drum Taps has often been overlooked. This document examines the baritone song cycle which was …

Why People Fail To Use Condoms For Std And Hiv Prevention, David T. Brunner

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The world is almost 30 years into the AIDS pandemic. People know how to prevent HIV by using abstinence, monogamy and condom use. Despite this awareness, people still put themselves at risk for HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases. Why? This thesis catalogues the various reasons why people fail to use condoms during sexual intercourse. The qualitative information represents specific selections from anonymous personal interviews with over 1500 individuals combined with other available data and information from other HIV field workers and organizations. The findings show four major categories of influences effecting an individual's decision to engage in unprotected sexual …

Understanding A Woman's Moral Obligation To Her Fetus: Maternal-Fetal Conflict As A Covenant Relationship, Marianne Burda

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Maternal-fetal conflict refers to a perceived incompatibility between the interests of a pregnant woman and her fetus. Maternal-fetal conflict occurs when a pregnant woman declines a medical treatment or procedure that her physician believes is necessary to benefit her fetus. In some situations, the pregnant woman's health is also at risk. The question explored in this dissertation is: what is the pregnant woman's moral obligation to her fetus when a cesarean section is recommended to save the life of or to prevent serious harm to her term viable fetus? The pregnant woman's life is not endangered.

Inconsistencies exist between normative …

Platforms And Protocols For The Multidimensional Microchip Electrophoretic Analysis Of Complex Proteomes, John K. Osiri

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The need for rapid, portable and high-throughput systems in proteomics is now prevalent because of demands for generating new protein-based disease biomarkers. However, 2-D protein profile patterns are lending themselves as potential diagnostic tools for biomarker discovery. It is difficult to identify protein biomarkers which are low abundant in the presence of highly abundant proteins, especially in complex biological samples like serum. Protein profiles from 2-D separation of the protein content of cells or body fluids, which are unique to certain physiological or pathological states, are currently available on internet databases. In this work, we demonstrate the ability to separate …

Foster Mothers' Experience Of Parenting A Foster Child With Attachment Problems: An Empirical Phenomenological Investigation, Cynthia Byers

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation explored foster mothers' experiences of parenting a foster child who displayed problematic attachment. This topic is important because research suggests foster children presenting with attachment problems often experience disrupted foster placements, which are known to be detrimental to their continued development.

An introductory letter seeking foster mothers with difficult to care for foster children between the ages of 2 and younger than 6 years was sent by seven foster care agencies in Allegheny County to all of those agencies' foster mothers. Foster mothers were not told in advance that the study involved attachment-disordered foster children. Six foster mothers …

Justification And Good Works: A Study Of The Joint Declaration On The Doctrine Of Justification, Justin Chay

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The doctrine of justification tells how the saving grace of God in Christ can be actualized in the believers. Because of the very importance of this doctrine, disputes broke out between Augustine and Pelagius, later in the medieval period, and most importantly during the Reformation period - which led to mutual condemnations and the division of the Western church. The church still does not have a unified voice in interpreting the doctrine despite recent ecumenical dialogues, which culminated in the Lutheran-Roman Catholic Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification in 1999.

Amyloid Aggregation-Mitigating Peptides As Potential Alzheimer's Drugs, Cyrus Kipkurui Bett

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Neuronal cytotoxicity observed in Alzheimer¡¦s disease (AD) is linked to the aggregation of £]-amyloid peptide (A£]) into toxic forms. Increasing evidence points to oligomeric species as the neurotoxic species compared to fibrils; disruption or inhibition of A£]ƒnself-assembly into oligomeric or fibrillar forms remains a viable therapeutic strategy to reduce A£] neurotoxicity. Amyloid aggregation mitigating peptides (AAMPs) were designed based on the A£]ƒn¡§hydrophobic core¡¨ A£]17-20, with C£\,£\-disubstituted amino acidsƒnƒv£\£\AAs) added into this core as disrupting agents. The number, distribution, and side chain functionality of £\£\AAs incorporated into the mitigator sequence was found influences the resultant aggregate morphology as indicated by ex-situ …

Single-Molecule Detection Of Unique Genome Signatures: Applications In Molecular Diagnostics And Homeland Security, Jason M. Emory

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Single-molecule detection (SMD) offers an attractive approach for identifying the presence of certain markers that can be used for in vitro molecular diagnostics in a near real-time format. The ability to eliminate sample processing steps afforded by the ultra-high sensitivity associated with SMD yields an increased sampling pipeline. When SMD and microfluidics are used in conjunction with nucleic acid-based assays such as the ligase detection reaction coupled with single-pair fluorescent resonance energy transfer (LDR-spFRET), complete molecular profiling and screening of certain cancers, pathogenic bacteria, and other biomarkers becomes possible at remarkable speeds and sensitivities with high specificity. The merging of …

Fabrication, Bonding, Assembly, And Testing Of Metal-Based Microchannel Devices, Fanghua Mei

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Microsystem technologies are believed to be an important part of the contemporary technological foundation and are becoming a commercially significant specialty area in manufacturing. The design and fabrication of microscale engineering structures has the potential of generating revolutionary changes in many products over a wide range of industrial sectors. Metal-based microchannel heat exchangers (MHEs) promise high heat transfer coefficients together with mechanical robustness, and are of interest for a wide range of applications. Fabrication technologies capable of creating high-aspect-ratio microscale structures (HARMSs) in metals such as Cu at low cost and high throughput are of particular interest. Likewise, simple and …

Local Behavior Of Distributions And Applications, Jasson Vindas

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This dissertation studies local and asymptotic properties of distributions (generalized functions) in connection to several problems in harmonic analysis, approximation theory, classical real and complex function theory, tauberian theory, summability of divergent series and integrals, and number theory. In Chapter 2 we give two new proofs of the Prime Number Theory based on ideas from asymptotic analysis on spaces of distributions. Several inverse problems in Fourier analysis and summability theory are studied in detail. Chapter 3 provides a complete characterization of point values of tempered distributions and functions in terms of a generalized pointwise Fourier inversion formula. The relation of …

Factors That Influence College Students Who Choose Engineering As Their Major To Presist In That Major To Their Fifth Semester, Kelli Elaine Wildman

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Individuals, institutions, and society are affected by whether or not students persist in college; therefore, persistence and retention on college campuses is an important topic for higher education systems. However, little research has been done on program retention. Since engineering as a profession is expected to increase, it is imperative to have students persist in the major. The primary purpose of this study is to determine the influence of selected demographic and academic characteristics in the decision of first time in college (FTIC) traditional-age undergraduates who declare engineering as their major at admission to persist in the curriculum from second …